






LIBRARY OF CONGRESS, 


Shelf 


UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 
































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Life of Sister Saint-Pierre. 




LIFE 


S 01 

SISTER SA 


/*A ithul «HT 

N-T-PiERR 


A Carmelite of Tours, Franeev 


WRITTEN BY HERSELF. 


Collated and Completed by means of her letters 
and the Annals of her Monastery, 

ftIthht- 

By the BEY. P. JANVIER, 


w 

DEAN OF THE CHAPTER OF THE METROPOLITAN CHURCH OF 
TOURS, DIRECTOR OF THE PRIESTS OF THE HOLY-FACE. 


With the approbation of the 

MOST REVEREND CHARLES COLET, 

ARCHBISHOP OF TOURS. 


Translated from, the French 

Br HENRI LE MERCIER de POMBIRAY, 
(all proprietary rights reserved.) 

BALTIMORE & NEW YORK : 

John Murphy & Co. 
1884 . 










3X^-7 osr 


Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1884, by 
THE DISCALCED CARMELITES OF NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA, 
in the office of the Librarian of Congress at Washington. 





APPROBATIONS. 


►P Charles, 

Archevêque de Tours, 
Tours, le 9 Juillet, 1881. 


* 

I heartily approve and recommend the Life of Sister Saint- 
Pierre, the Carmelite of Tours, translated by Mr. H. de Pom- 
biray from the French of M. L'abbé Janvier. I have read this 
book with great interest, and will be glad to see it rapidly dif¬ 
fused among the faithful, who will find it a treasure of edifi¬ 
cation and instruction calculated to inspire them with devotion 
to the Holy Face, and zeal to promote the Work of the Kepara- 
tion for Blasphemy and the Profanation of Sunday. 

►b N. J. Perché, 
Archbishop of New Orleans. 


I am of opinion that the reading of the English translation 
of the Life of Sister Saint-Pierre, Carmelite Nun of Tours, will 
conduce much to the spread of true Christian piety. 

Theobald Walter Butler, S. J., 

Superior of N. 0. Mission. 


I have read the English Translation of the Life of Sister 
Saint-Pierre, Carmelite of Tours. I have found in it nothing 
contrary to Catholic Dogma or to morals. 

F. Gautrelet, S. J., 

Spring Hill College, Mobile. 
































































































































































» 























CONDITIONS 

For Being Received into the Confraternity of the 
Reparation of the Holy Face. 


1. To be inscribed on the Register of the Confraternity where 
it is canonically established. 

2. To obtain a copy of the Regulations wherewith will be 
found the ticket of admission. 

3. To wear, at all times, the Cross of the Confraternity. 

4. Never to blaspheme, and to do all one can to prevent Blas¬ 
phemy and the Profanation of Sunday. 

5. When not possible to prevent these crimes, to make, at 
least, an interior act of reparation for them. 

6. To recite daily a Pater, Ave and Gloria Patri in union with 
the Associates in the spirit of Reparation. 

Note. —The Most Rev. Archbishops, Right Rev. Bishops and 
Rev. clergy, also, all pious laymen, are earnéstly requested to 
use their influence in having exposed for devotion pictures of 
the Holy Face, and establishing everywhere the Confraternity 
of the Reparation for Blasphemy and Profanation of Sunday. 

All desirable information connected with this Confraternity 
may be obtained by addressing the Rev. Director of the Confra¬ 
ternity, Oratory of the Holy Face, 8, Rue Saint-Etienne, Tours, 
Indre-et-Loire, France; or, the Rev. Mother Prioress, Convent 
of Discalced Carmelites, 134 Barrack Street, New Orleans, 
Louisiana, in whose chapel the Confraternity of the Holy Face 
is canonically established. 


IX 













' 

. 




































EXTRACT 

From the Report Given His Grace, the Archbishop of 
Tours, France, Relative to the Present Work. 


No better account can be given of the end and object of this 
new Life of Sister Saint-Pierre, by the Reverend P. Janvier, than 
is contained in these words of his interesting Preface : 

“ The path has been cleared and prepared for us by a former 
excellent though anonymous work, which has excited consider¬ 
able interest and effected much good. Thanks to this publica¬ 
tion (now out of print), the name of the Carmelite of Tours has 
become so familiar in Religious Communities, and among pious 
persons in the world, that all are eager to know more of her; 
especially as regards her communications with our Lord, do 
they wish a more vivid and attractive account, one more literal 
and complete. It is this general and reiterated desire, we now 
earnestly endeavor to satisfy. For this purpose, the archives of 
the Carmel have been re-opened, and thence we bring forth a 
new Life of Sister Saint-Pierre written, not on a different basis 
from the one already known, but under a new form, by a new 
process, very simple and natural, that of allowing the Sister 
herself to speak more directly and more frequently, we giving 
her own words as nearly as possible.” 

It is my duty to add what the Reverend P. Janvier’s modesty 
forbade his saying, namely, that the author of the new Life of 
Sister Saint-Pierre, has most happily surmounted great difficul¬ 
ties. The first consisted in putting together, in such manner, as 
to make it a complete, coherent whole* the different documents 
composing the work, and this he has accomplished with the 
same marked ability as was displayed in the arrangement of 
those which served him in writing the Life of M. Dupont. 


XI 



Xll 


EXTRACT. 


The second difficulty was still more delicate ; that of softening, 
palliating or explaining certain passages of the Sister’s writ¬ 
ings which might cause astonishment or tempt criticism. Of 
this arduous task, he has likewise acquitted himself most credi¬ 
tably, with as much prudence and reserve as learning ; detract¬ 
ing nothing from the manuscript’s simple, ingenuous coloring, 
but, at the same time, toning down certain shades when neces¬ 
sary, and anticipating by explanations of a nature fully calcu¬ 
lated to satisfy them, the objections souls little versed in 
spirituality might be disposed to make to some portions of the 
Sister’s narration. 

J. de Belltjne, 

Canon , Private Secretary. 

Tours, July 9, 1881. 


PREFACE 


The Life of Sister Saint-Pierre is the key and necessary har¬ 
binger of that of M. Dupont. These two beautiful lives uphold, 
explain, and mutually complete each other; both being inti¬ 
mately united to the same work,—the Separation of Blasphemy 
and of the Profanation of Sunday, by the worship of the Holy 
Face. 

Priest of the Holy Face commissioned to direct the Repara¬ 
tive Work, after the manner canonically established at Tours, 
by the successor of St. Martin, having written the life of the 
fervent layman who was its creator and first apostle, we were 
led by circumstances to fix our attention on the pious Carmelite, 
who received its initiative inspiration. The way has been 
opened for our work, and the ground prepared by an anony¬ 
mous “ Life ” which excited considerable interest, and effected 
much good. Accompanied by the Approbation of His Grace 
the Most Reverend Archbishop, it appeared two years ago, 
under the title of: “ Vie de la Sœur Marie de Saint-Pierre de la 
Sainte-Famille , diaprés ses écrits et autres documents authentiques.” * 
In this excellent publication (at present out of print), the 
mission and character of the Sister were delineated, with equal 
historic exactitude, and doctrinal depth ; for the first time, the 
life and writings of this chosen soul, until then unknown, were 
brought to light ; and very soon they attracted the attention of 
the faithful. Thus has the name of the Carmelite of Tours 
become so familiar in Religious Communities and among pious 
persons in the world, that all are eager to know more of her ; 
especially as regards her communications with our Lord, do 

*Life of Sister Mary of St. Peter of the Holy Family, from her writings 
and other authentic documents. 

xiii 



XIV 


PREFACE. 


they wish to have a more vivid and attractive account, one 
more literal and complete. It is this general and reiterated 
desire we now earnestly endeavor to satisfy. For this purpose 
the Archives of the Carmel have been re-opened, and thence 
with as much care and curiosity, as religious respect, we bring 
forth a new Life of Sister Saint-Pierre , written, not on a different 
basis from its predecessor, but under a new form, by a new pro¬ 
cess, very simple and striking, which consists in allowing the 
Sister herself to speak more directly and more frequently, we 
repeating her own words as nearly as possible. 

Furthermore, the narration has been disburdened of several 
secondary details which made it tedious and were really of 
little interest. We disclaim all pretence of having excelled 
our predecessor; we most willingly leave him the glory, and 
publicly recognize his merit in having smoothed the way for 
us, by surmounting most delicate and serious difficulties. 

We have simply deviated from his course, in order to reach 
with greater facility a more numerous and less exclusive dass 
of readers. Nor will the touching and ingenuous figure of the 
pious Sister lose, by being more generally known and presented 
to the public under a new aspect. 

We now summarize the documents that have served our pur¬ 
pose in the compilation of this work : 

1. The Life of the Sister written by herself in obedience to' 
her Superiors. 

2. Her private letters concerning her interior state, and the 
object of her mission, just as she wrote them in haste, day by 
day, according to the impressions of grace, and the lights 
received from On High. 

3. The Annals of the Carmel of Tours, relative to the foun¬ 
dation and history of the monastery; including Circulars, Né¬ 
crologie notices, also letters from without, diverse documents, 
testimonies, and justification papers concerning the Sister. 

4. The notes collected in our personal intercourse with the 
Religious who had known her, notably, Mother Teresa of St. 
Joseph, Sister Saint-Pierre’s intimate confidante, and who at 


PREFACE. 


XV 


the time was Secretary of the Prioress,—but more especially 
with the Reverend Prioress, Mother Mary of the Incarnation, 
whose confessor we were, in her last moments. 

5. Finally the first “Life” already mentioned, and from 
which we have occasionally borrowed many useful reflections. 

The Sister’s private letters concerning her divine communi¬ 
cations, form the most important part of her writings, and to 
this precious mine we have had frequent recourse ; it is indeed 
the source whence this work derives its principal interest. We 
shall not here extol their merit and excellency ; for the numer¬ 
ous literal extracts we have made from them, will enable the 
reader to form his own opinion; and we are sure, he will not 
fail to appreciate their charms, as well as to note their edifying 
character and the seal of the supernatural impressed upon them. 
But how has such a treasure been brought to light in these latter 
days, in so unexpected and happy a manner, after remaining 
hidden from the public for twenty years? We will explain in 
a few words : 

After the death of Marie de Saint-Pierre, her writings were 
all, without exception, placed in the hands of the Diocesan 
Authority, in order to ascertain to what extent they might be 
made public. Nothing was wiser and more conformable to the 
spirit of the Church, since these writings treated of super¬ 
natural and mystical matters of a most delicate and elevated 
order. Furthermore, as there was question of a Work of Rep¬ 
aration for the crimes of contemporaneous society, in particular 
for the sins of France, which were especially designated, these 
letters, though indirectly, referred to the political events of the 
day. 

Now, this epoch of 1848, in the beginning of the second Re¬ 
public which followed the fall of Louis Philippe, was one of 
great peril ; for revolutionary passions, violently agitated, were 
plotting the most subversive theories, and had already demanded 
the separation of Church and State. 

Mgr. Morlot, who was then Archbishop of Tours, used, in his 
dealings with the civil power, such great caution as, at times, 


XVI 


PREFACE. 


was judged extreme ; naturally timid, he was unwilling to put 
himself forward by allowing the publication and circulation in 
his Episcopal city, and under his auspices, of warnings of public 
woes and chastisements. After examining them himself, and 
authorizing others to examine the writings of Sister Saint-Pierre, 
His Grace, acting upon the advice of his councillors, ordered all 
these writings, indiscriminately, to be placed under seal, in the 
Archives of the Carmel of Tours, and communicated to no one 
whomsoever. 

Though refraining from pronouncing canonical judgment re¬ 
garding them, he declared them free from theological error, and 
did not positively deny the Divine mission of the Sister, whom, 
on the contrary, he qualified as a most fervent religious, who, 
notwithstanding, might have been unconsciously influenced by 
her imagination, and, through this means, have given way 
to these “prophetic instincts,” admitting of a natural explana¬ 
tion; moreover, considering the “present state of things,” he 
did not think so much importance should be attached to her 
Revelations. All this was exceedingly vague, and tending to 
convince us that the especial reasons determining the Arch¬ 
bishop’s interdiction were the critical and exceptional circum¬ 
stances just then surrounding the Church and France. 

As we shall see in the course of our narration, the Prelate 
personally professed the highest esteem for the virtues and sanc¬ 
tity of this pious Carmelite. He more than once declared that 
her inspirations appeared to him as coming from God, and not 
the result of her own spirit. Even the terms of the Archi¬ 
épiscopal decision, forbidding her writings to be made known, 
clearly evinces the serious importance he attached to them ; for, 
before sealing, he takes care to sign his name, page after page, 
to all the autograph sheets, and, also, expressly declares that if 
favorable circumstances should again call attention to Sister 
Saint-Pierre, her writings may become the subject - of another 
examination, either on his part, or that of his successors. Con¬ 
sequently, the interdiction was not final ; a way was left open 
for the future. 


PREFACE. 


XVII 


This is not the place to defend this virgin of Carmel ; the his¬ 
tory of her life and the faithful picture of her virtues will be 
sufficient justification in the eyes of our readers. It is also out 
of our province to judge, still less to condemn the severe act to 
which her writings were subjected, since it was one purely ad¬ 
ministrative, and concerning matters upon which the Church 
has not yet pronounced judgment. We prefer to think that the 
hour had not yet come, for revealing to the public these secrets 
confided to the servant of God. 

The Carmelites believed it also ; they submitted with docility 
to the wishes of the Diocesan Authority, and, notwithstanding 
pressing solicitations, the seals remained intact and a religious 
silence was kept regarding their contents. Twenty-six years 
elapsed, two Archbishops succeeded Mgr. Morlot in the See of 
Tours, and still Marie de Saint-Pierre remained unknown, nor 
had the slightest step been taken towards lifting the veil which 
covered her life and writings. 

But Providence, during this long interval, was preparing its 
work by furnishing in the third successsor of Mgr. Morlot, the 
individual who would aid this Carmel in accomplishing the mis¬ 
sion for which it seems to have been predestined. Mgr. Colet. 
Vicar-General of Dijon, became Superior of the Carmelites of 
Beaune, who were intimately connected with those of Tours. 
He was one of the first in France to pass favorable judgment upon 
an abridged account of the communication made by our Lord to 
Marie de Saint-Pierre. Also, was it at his instance, that during 
the Sister’s life, the Bishop of Dijon had established in that city 
the Confraternity of Reparation so earnestly demanded by the 
servant of God,—one of the very first of these Confraternities. 
Then, making use of his experience gained in the guidance of 
souls, and his profound knowledge of mystical matters, Mgr. 
Colet took up the pen, and with sure and steady hand, wrote the 
admirable life of a Carmelite of the seventeenth century, Mlle, de 
Quatrebarbes, in religion, Mother Elizabeth of the Trinity, who 
was professed at Tours, and afterwards became Prioress of Beaune. 


XV111 


PREFACE. 


In this work, he gives an account of certain supernatural events 
similar to those which fill the life of Sister Saint-Pierre.* 

Later, during an Episcopate of thirteen years at Luçon, he 
became fully cognizant of communications touching certain 
celestial revelations, which one of his predecessors, Mgr. Soyer, 
had received from a Carmelite of Poitiers, Rev. Mother Ade¬ 
laide, and which greatly resembled those of the Carmelite of 
Tours. 

Hence, the new Archbishop, on taking possession of the See 
of St. Martin in 1875, was better qualified than any other to ap¬ 
preciate the Divine mission of Sister Saint-Pierre, and knew 
exactly what course to pursue relative to the publication of her 
writings. We must also add that the period was singularly 
favorable. France was just issuing from a frightful cataclysm, 
after passing through a series of trials unparalleled in her annals; 
and the chastisements foretold by the daughter of Carmel, had 
they not, alas ! been but too severely executed ? 

Never were the Works of Reparation, revealed by our Lord to 
His faithful confidante, more necessary or urgent ! A glance 
sufficed Mgr. Colet, scarcely installed at Tours, to comprehend 
that the propitious moment, so impatiently anticipated, had at 
last dawned ; and in the first year of his episcopate at Tours, he 
authorized the seals to be broken which so long held secret the 
life and writings of the venerable Sister. After a new and 
thorough examination, which seems to have been a legacy be¬ 
queathed by Mgr. Morlot to his successors, Mgr. Colet permitted 
the historian to draw forth the treasures of light and edification 
contained in this precious mine, now so happily beginning to 
excite the attention and interest of the public. 

The joy of M. Dupont and all the friends of the Carmel, as 
well as the consoling results attending the removal of the seals, 
we will relate hereafter. At present, we can only bless and ad¬ 
mire that Providence, which in this as in all things else, wisely 

* Vie de la mère Elizabeth de la Trinité de Quatrebarbes, Religieuse Carmelite 
à Beaune, par M. L’abbê Colet, Yic. Gen. de Dijon, 1861. 


PREFACE. 


XIX 


appoints its hour and prepares its ways, with equal strength and 
mildness. M. Dupont expresses the same sentiment in one of 
his letters: “Ah !” exclaims he, “if Sister Saint-Pierre’s reve¬ 
lations upon the necessity of Reparation could only be published, 
what numbers would they not induce to swell the ranks of prayer 
and penance ! But, to bring this about, three things are indis¬ 
pensable : secrecy, patience, prayer ! ” These discreet and hum¬ 
ble sentiments clearly reveal to us the man of God, the fervent 
layman, obeying, before all else, the Church and those who rep¬ 
resent her. And is not the realization of his wishes, indeed, due 
to the fact that he, conjointly with the Carmelite Nuns, fulfilled 
the conditions he judged “indispensable” to its success? To 
the many questions of the curious, from time to time, addressed 
him concerning the matter, he would answer plainly : “Author¬ 
ity prescribes silence in regard to Sister Saint-Pierre, and I am 
compelled to respect it. The Holy Scriptures prove clearly to 
me that God has always justifiable reasons in allowing such 
silence, and I leave this entirely in the hands of Providence.” * 
Yet, no one desired more ardently than himself the removal 
of this restriction imposed by the Metropolitan Authority. He 
awaited this signal, the natural consequence of which would be 
to increase public devotion to the Holy Face, and thus perfect 
the Work of the Reparation, f “It will impart,” says he, “a 
great impulse to the movement towards this Reparative Work 
for blasphemy. It is time the world should become aware of 
God’s intentions, fear the chastisements of Hîs Justice, and take 
refuge in the Heart of Jesus, filled with Mercy ! ” J 
May this hope of the holy man find in our midst its complete 
realization ! Reparation is, at present, a more pressing necessity 
than when Marie de Saint-Pierre lived. It was but lately a 
learned and pious theologian wisely remarked : “ The interests 
of France, her regeneration, demand that we move towards the 

♦Life of M. Dupont, t. II., p. 99 (French copy), 
f Ibid., p. 95. 

% Ibid., p. 97. 


XX 


PREFACE. 


Work of Reparation; the nation has not returned to God, 
wherefore, He keeps her suffering ; she must make atonement ; 
it is necessary. Says Holy Scripture, ‘she must return to her¬ 
self/ but, alas ! far from this, she continues her march in wick-, 
edness!” * . 

Hence, the eminent ecclesiastic whose words we hawe just 
quoted, attributes great weight to the Revelations of Sister 
Saint-Pierre. “This soul,” says he, “was certainly in the 
right path ; her simple union with God, and the supernatural 
spirit by which she was actuated under all circumstances, are 
the seal of a predestined soul, whilst her life of reparation is an 
equally evident mark of the action of Divine grace. There was 
nothing personal in anything she did ; all was for the glory of 
God and the salvation of souls . . . Again, let us take notice 
that she was always an exemplary religious, that palpable signs 
clearly indicate God’s guidance of her in totally exceptional 
ways, that the signal favors heaped upon her, never occasioned 
the least pride, that she was always obedient to her Superiors 
even when their will seemed to oppose the orders she received 
directly from our Lord, that her self-renunciation was in no 
wise affected by occupations which were repugnant to her, that 
she never betrayed obstinacy in her ideas, and that the spirit of 
faith animated, in an extraordinary degree, her every thought 
and act. From all this we reasonably conclude, that far from 
being deluded, she, on the contrary, possesses every mark of a 
holy and predestined soul.” 

Such testimony from a very enlightened and competent judge, 
in favor of the daughter of St. Teresa, our readers as well as 
ourselves, will no doubt appreciate. We also quote the com¬ 
parison M. Dupont has drawn between the Revelations of Sister 
Saint-Pierre and those of Blessed Margaret-Mary Alacoque. 
“The virgin of the Visitation,” says he, “heard these words 
which, to-day, constitute our hope : ‘ Behold this Heart which 
has loved mankind so much. All who thus honor Me shall receive 

* Letter of M. L’abbé Delatour, Y. G. of Versailles, Jan. 10,1881. 


PREFACE. 


XXI 


from Me very great favors ; this is the last effort of My love in re-kind¬ 
ling extinguished faith . 1 And the virgin of Carmel, in the Com¬ 
munications our Lord made to her relative to the Reparation of 
Blasphemy heard these : ‘ I will give thee My Adorable Face and 
each time thou shalt 'present It to My Father , My Mouth will he 
opened to place thy cause ; My Face is to be the sensible sign of the 
Reparation .’ Now, it is evident,” he continues, “that our Lord 
has been pleased to recompense already, in the clearest manner, 
the faith of many, who have labored to render homage to His 
Holy Face, especially with the intention of repairing the out¬ 
rages committed against the Divine Majesty. Hence, let us 
bear in mind that when we love God, we cannot do too much 
for His glory.” Elsewhere, he says: “If the Heart of Jesus be 
the emblem of His love, His Adorable Face is the dolorous 
expression of the sufferings He endured for us, mystically 
accompanying this same Saviour who is ever occupied with our 
salvation. Ah ! what should we not do for Him ! The Face of 
Jesus tells us it much better than any discourse.”* These 
reflections of “ The Holy Man of Tours,” may serve as a rule for 
our conduct, and to re-animate our confidence. 

The cultiLS of the Holy Face being the sensible sign of the 
Reparation, and at the same time, the complement of the devo¬ 
tion to the Sacred Heart, let us then unite, by the same faith, 
the Heart of Jesus and the Face of Jesus, making them thus 
the common object and centre of our love, homage and repa¬ 
ration. 

Behold the means of salvation offered to contemporaneous 
society, to France, and to souls ! Behold the work it behooves 
us to practice and propagate with all possible fervor and perfec¬ 
tion ! Nothing will contribute more effectually towards it than 
the edifying life, and luminous writings of Sister Saint-Pierre ; 
and the reader, in perusing these pages, should bear in mind, 
that this was the author’s sole motive in preparing the work for 
publication. 


* Life of M. Dupont, t. II, p. 94 and 95. 


XXII 


PREFACE. 


We declare, relative to the terms of eulogy or veneration 
applied to the servant of God and other pious personages, 
likewise, as regards the supernatural virtues, miraculous facts, 
and Divine communications of which this book treats, that 
we conform absolutely and wholly to the Decree of Urban VIII, 
upon such matters, wishing to anticipate, in no wise, the Apos* 
tolic decisions. 


June 29th , 1881. 


P. J. 


CONTENTS 


Chap. 


Page. 

I. 

The Little Bretonne, . 

1 

IL 

The Vocation,. 

. 16 

HL 

The Probation, .... 

. 30 

IV. 

The Carmel of Tours, . 

. 50 

V. 

The Novitiate, .... 

. 69 

VI. 

The Profession, .... 

. 85 

VII. 

The Golden Arrow, 

. 110 

VIII. 

The Reparation, .... 

. 129 

IX. 

The Association, .... 

. 152 

X. 

The Archbishop, .... 

. 171 

XI. 

The Little Gospel, 

. 189 

XII. 

The Holy Face, .... 

. 210 

XIII. 

Veronica and the Good Thief, . 

. 228 

XIV. 

La Salette,. 

. 246 

XV. 

The Sins of France, 

. 260 

XVI. 

The Obstacles, 

. 276 

XVII. 

The Communists, .... 

. 293 

XVIII. 

The Arch-confraternity, . 

. 309 

XIX. 

The Divine Maternity, 

. 321 

XX. 

Mercy, . 

. 348 

XXI. 

The Secretary’s Colloquy, . 

. 376 

XXII. 

Her Virtues,. 

. 398 

XXIII. 

Her Last Sickness—Her Death, . 

. 420 

XXIV. 

Her Sepulchre—Her Work, 

. 439 


XXlll 



























LIFE 


OF 

SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 

CHAPTER I. 

THE LITTLE BRETONNE. 

“I am crying for my sins!” {The Sister’s words when a child.) 

We are indebted to Catholic Brittany, that land 
so fruitful in great characters and heroic virtues, 
for having given us Marie de Saint-Pierre. She 
was born at B-ennes, in 1816, of a family of honest 
artisans, of whom, however, but little is known. 
Her father, Pierre Éluère, was a locksmith, and, as 
we shall see, a Christian of the old stock. Her 
mother, Françoise Portier, was a woman of piety 
and worth. At an early day this virtuous woman 
was taken from her husband, leaving him the care 
of twelve children, whose long and mortal ailments 
caused him much suffering and toil ; all successively 
preceded him to the tomb, with the exception of a 
son. His glory before God is to have given to 
Carmel, and to the Church a daughter of bene¬ 
diction, whose history we have undertaken to 
relate. 


1 


1 



2 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


When Marie de Saint-Pierre became a religious, 
her Superiors ordered her to write her own life, 
and all that she knew of her earlier years. We 
shall make ample use of her writings and letters, 
preserving, as far as possible, the Sister’s simple and 
candid style. She begins thus : 

“Notwithstanding the great repugnance I feel to 
write of things personally concerning myself, yet I 
shall not swerve from obedience, but will perform 
this act with the aid of the Holy Infant, Jesus, in 
whose little Hand I have placed my pen, praying 
Him to write Himself, an account of the precious 
graces He has given me, and also of my wickedness 
in having so much offended Hifn, that thus His 
Father may be glorified, for having, by His power, 
brought forth in the miserable soil of my soul, filled 
with imperfections and covered with the briars and 
thorns of sin, such beautiful fruits for the glory of 
His Holy Name.* 

“It is then at the Feet of the Infant Jesus, in the 
crib that I am going to make this little record, in 
order to obey you, my most Rev. Mother, f 

“I was born on the 4th of October, 1816, a not¬ 
able day, being the anniversary of the death of our 
holy Mother Teresa, and the feast of St. Francis of 
Assissium, whose name my mother bore. I was 

*She here alludes to the work of Reparation for, blasphemy 
which our Lord revealed to her, and which would indeed con¬ 
tribute to the glory of His Divine Name. 

fThe Mother Prioress, of the Carmel of Tours, Marie of 
the Incarnation, of whom we shall hereafter speak. The docu¬ 
ment A, from which we borrow this extract, is dated June 
13, 1847. 


THE LITTLE BRETONNE. 


3 


baptized in the Church of Saint Germain at Rennes, 
and the patrons given me, were St. Peter and St. 
Francis of Assissium. My poor mother received on 
that anniversary of her feast-day, a sad gift in the 
birth of the little girl, whose maladies and wayward¬ 
ness were to cause her so much solicitude. She con¬ 
fided me to the care of a nurse, who was an excellent 
person. When I w r as a month old, I met with an 
accident, which, without God’s especial protection, 
might have caused my death. My nurse had gone 
out an instant, leaving me in the cradle. One of her 
little children took me up, and doubtless wishing to 
warm me, carried me near the fire; but I fell out of 
the child’s arms into the fire, and my face has always 
retained the mark of that accident. My mother 
was much distressed, and withdrew me from that 
person’s care. 

“I am going to relate one of my first traits of 
malice. I was told of this accident when older, and 
one day, when this poor, good woman, my nurse, 
came to see me, I received her by saying very mali¬ 
ciously : ‘ You have already burned one cheek, do 
you come now to fricassee the other?’ 

“At the age of four years, I had an attack of 
scarlet fever which brought me to death’s door. My 
parents have told me that I was nineteen days 
in danger, and during all that time could take 
nothing except occasionally a little cider. It always 
made my father laugh in speaking of this illness to 
me, to think that a beverage so illy suited to my 
condition, had sustained and preserved my life. 

“As soon as my reason began to develop, my 
good parents, who were truly pious, taught me the 


4 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


first rudiments of a Christian education. But I had 
a very ugly disposition, I was passionate, stubborn, 
and giddy. My pious mother often took me to 
Church, but in my thoughtlessness, I was constantly 
turning my head to see what was going on. My 
mother never failed to punish me severely for this 
behavior. I was taken to confession when six years 
and a half old. I was very jealous of my little 
sister, so much so that they were obliged to send her 
away from me for some time. With all these defects, 
which rendered me extremely disagreeable, I had 
even more pride and self-love. To humble me, my 
mother once said before me to my father : ‘ All ! this 
little girl is surely not our own, she must have been 
exchanged in the nursery ; it is not possible that a 
child of ours could be as bad as this little one is/ 
This language was very displeasing to me, I knew 
not what to think of it. 

“ However, I endeavored to gain a victory over my 
pride. There daily passed our door a poor blind man, 
badly clothed, who sometimes needed a charitable 
hand at the turn of the street to guide him in the 
proper direction. My parents had already suggested 
my rendering him this service, but the thought was 
extremely repugnant to my pride. At last, one day 
I did great violence to myself, and taking the good 
man by the arm, I guided him into the path, and it 
seemed to me then, that I had performed a most 
heroic act. 

“ When I was naughty and my parents punished 
me, I did not rebel against them, because I saw that 
these punishments benefitted me; and I felt touches 
of grace reproaching me for my waywardness. My 


THE LITTLE BRETONNE. 


5 


parents had taught me devotion to the most Blessed 
Virgin, by telling me instances of this good Mother’s 
protection, which touched my heart. I began to 
invoke her and I became better. I now commenced 
to enjoy prayer, and, conducting myself properly in 
Church, had no more penances to suffer when I 
returned from High Mass on Sundays; and when 
anything clashed with my inclinations, striving to 
overcome my rebellious feelings, I would say : ‘ My 
God ! I offer Thee this in expiation of my sins .’ 99 

Let us, for an instant, interrupt this ingenuous 
narration, to add two facts connected with this part 
of it, and which we have learned elsewhere. The 
consciousness of what she called her sins, (they were, 
as we all know, but the waywardness of childhood) 
had already in her, at so tender an age, assumed 
vivid intensity. Thus several times her eldest sister 
found her alone shedding tears, and on one occasion 
inquiring the cause of them, the dear little one 
answered : “ I am crying for my sins.” She so much 
dreaded even the shadow of wrong, that having, 
when only eight years old, some scruples about read¬ 
ing a little story-book which had been loaned her, she 
brought it before opening, to the parish priest to ask 
his advice, and learning from him, that though not 
bad, the book was frivolous, she immediately returned 
it to its owner, and without having read a single 
page. 

“ My good parents made me attend the Catechism 
class for the little children of the parish. I enjoyed 
the instructions, and my conduct being edifying, 
compliments succeeded the reproaches I had been 
accustomed to receive. People would say before me 
1 * 


6 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


to my mother : ‘ Madam, your little girl behaves in 
Church as if she were forty, years old/ But I 
believe these praises still occasioned pride. I began 
also the devotion of the Way of the Cross. In 
reading the account of our Lord’s sufferings, my 
heart was deeply touched, for I believed that my sins 
were the cause of them ; and I would sorrowfully 
say to Him : ‘ O, my Saviour ! during Thy Passion, 
didst Thou foresee that I would one day be converted, 
and be solely Thine?’ I kissed the ground at each 
Station, and our Lord permitted that this act of piety 
should draw upon me a slight humiliation, for I 
returned home with dirt on my face, and my sister 
seeing it, called me ( dirty nose,’ whenever she got 
angry with me. As this little sarcasm was highly 
displeasing to me, it was a great trial to my feeble 
virtue. 

“ Grace attracted me strongly to God, but I was-not 
constant in good ; I would rise and fall. Having 
heard, though I know not through what source, of a 
kind of prayer called mental, more agreeable to God 
than vocal prayer, I desired to practice this devotion, 
and said to myself, I am not going to articulate 
the words whilst praying, and this will be mental 
prayer ; but when I had finished, my heart was dis¬ 
quieted, lest I had not fulfilled the obligation of my 
morning and evening prayers. Our Lord seeing my 
desire, inspired me to think of His sufferings and 
my sins, at which I would weep bitterly ; and some¬ 
what later He permitted that I should hear a ser¬ 
mon treating entirely on meditation. I opened my 
ears and heart to such an interesting subject, happy 
in knowing at last how to make mental prayer.” 


THE LITTLE BRETONNE. 


7 


This attraction for prayer at such an early age, 
foreshadowed the marvels which were to be its fruits. 
When the child was ten years and a half old, she 
prepared herself for her First Communion by mak¬ 
ing a good general confession. 

“Through the mercy of God,” says she, “my 
heart was truly touched by grace; I gave myself 
entirely to Him, and received with much devotion 
this Divine Saviour, whom I had so offended in my 
early years. 

“The sacrament of Confirmation \ps adminis¬ 
tered to me the same day, and I was invested with 
the Scapular, which placed me under the protection 
of that tender Mother, to whom I owed my conver¬ 
sion My confessor, seeing that I was entirely 
changed permitted me to communicate again during 
the course of the year ; and this good father himself, 
began to marvel at the changes grace had wrought 
in my soul. He sometimes spoke to me on the 
subject, but after saying much that was pleasant to 
my ears, he never failed to humble me ; and as I had 
but a small stock of humility, I would have pre¬ 
ferred not receiving praises, were they to be followed 
by humiliations. Our Lord, whose watchful Hand 
was guiding me, wished to purify my soul by interior 
tribulations, in making me pass through a severe 
trial, truly calculated to drive pride forever from my 
heart. 

“The demon fearing his prey had escaped him, 
redoubled his attacks ; finding himself driven from 
his abode, he went, as the Gospel tells us, to seek 
seven spirits more wicked than himself, to assist him 
in recovering his possessions. I was assailed by 


8 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


thousands of temptations, my mind was shrouded in 
darkness, my soul devoured by scruples; every 
instant I believed that I was committing sins. I 
had no rest. If I listened to a sermon, the demon 
hissed in my ears curses and blasphemies; evil 
thoughts martyrized my mind. I was then only 
twelve years of age; but the sins of my past life 
tormented me. It seemed to me that I had not con¬ 
fessed them, and now confession appeared almost an 
impossibility, for the reason that I lost myself in the 
length of examinations, and never believed that I 
was well enough prepared, so that when my turn 
came to enter the confessional, I went away, my soul 
filled with trouble. I found no more consolation in 
prayer, for my prayers were so distracted that I 
thought them displeasing to God, and I was contin¬ 
ually recommencing them. This repetition was as 
ridiculous as it was fatiguing. My confessor did all 
he could to reassure and console me ; but I, being so 
young, and having no experience in temptations of 
this sort, did not sufficiently make known to him 
the extent of my misery. The good God was puri¬ 
fying my soul, for during this time of trial I was 
very far from tasting the sweets of self-love. 

“ Our Lord also afflicted me in a very sensible 
manner, by taking to Himself my poor mother, 
whom I dearly loved. When she died, I remem¬ 
bered having heard, that like myself St. Teresa was 
but twelve years old when she lost her mother, and 
following her example, I begged the most Blessed 
Virgin to be my mother, and replace her who had 
been taken from me. The most holy Virgin granted 
my prayer, for ever since, I have experienced in an 


THE LITTLE BRETONNE. 


9 


especial manner her maternal protection. For sev¬ 
eral years I continued to attend the Catechism class. 
The Vicar who taught it was a very learned priest, 
and he is now a Bishop.* I think he saw clearly 
the sad state of my soul, but as he was not my con¬ 
fessor, he did not offer consolation. 

“ However, it was he who, in that sermon of which 
I have spoken, taught me how to make mental 
prayer, and he was later of much service to me. 

“The ‘Catechism Feast’ was now approaching, 
and three little girls were chosen to give in dialogue 
form, a public conference. I was one of the num¬ 
ber. Each of us had a part to learn. The dialogue 
ran thus : two of my companions were to consult me 
concerning the pleasures of the world, which they 
were to extol most highly, whilst I must expose their 
nothingness and vanity. One of them ended by 
saying, ‘that she judged from my discourse, I had 
made a vow of poverty, and would probably one day 
be a Carmelite.’ Thanks be to the Lord, I indeed 
received later the grace of that vocation. My two 
companions remained in the world and were mar¬ 
ried. 

“ In the following manner, it pleased God, at last, 
to deliver me from my great interior tribulations. 
A pious lady, who had the same confessor as myself, 
knowing the state of my soul, had the charity to 
speak to him of it. One day when I was to enter 
the confessional immediately after her, deeming my 
preparation insufficient, I arose to withdraw, but to 
my astonishment, my confessor opened his confes- 

* Mgr. de la Hailandière, Bishop of Vincennes, Indiana, 
United States of America; lie afterwards returned to Rennes. 


10 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


sional door and called me, intimating that he wished 
me to make my confession without further delay. I 
excused myself on the plea that I had not finished 
my examination, nor excited myself to proper con¬ 
trition, but he paid no heed to my reasonings. Then 
I yielded to obedience and he gave me absolution. 
‘ My daughter/ said he, ‘ rest assured that this con¬ 
fession is one of the best of your life/ He now 
expressly forbade me to be continually recommencing 
my prayers, and he also directed me how to deal with 
the scruples by which I was annoyed. The Lord 
gave me the grace to obey, and the demon was van¬ 
quished by obedience ; all my disquietude vanished 
like smoke, and peace returned to my soul. Then 
with humble confidence and peace of mind, approach¬ 
ing our Divine Saviour in the Sacrament of His 
Love, I soon experienced the greatest benefits ; my 
soul was inundated with consolations. I also received 
signal graces when assisting at the Holy Sacrifice of 
the Mass; at the moment of consecration, I had 
much difficulty in restraining the transports of my 
soul, so as not to be observed by others. My exer¬ 
cise of the presence of God was continual.” 

As she lived in her parents’ home with her 
brothers and sisters, Perrine (this was the name 
given her, being the derivative from that of her 
patron, St. Pierre) willingly mingled in their recrea¬ 
tions. It was the custom there on Sundays, after 
assisting at the services of the day, for families and 
parties of friends to stroll out into the country. 
They carried provisions with them and amused them¬ 
selves in innocent sports. That the young girl 
knew how to render these hours of recreation pious 


THE LITTLE BRETONNE. 


11 


and edifying, we learn from one of her cousins, 
Jennie Benoit, the same age as herself, and who 
usually made one of the party at these little festivals. 
Arriving at their destination, Perrine would lead her 
cousin aside, and all their conversation would turn 
upon one subject, the Blessed Virgin, her protection, 
favors and virtues. 

The education of our young Bretonne was very 
limited ; she attended school only two years—read¬ 
ing, writing, the first elements of grammar and 
arithmetic being deemed sufficient for a future work¬ 
woman. The daughter of Éluère the locksmith, 
although naturally well endowed, received no farther 
educational advantages, and as two- of her father’s 
sisters kept a large store for the sale of seamstress’ 
work, Perrine was apprenticed to them to learn a 
trade. 

“ My good aunt,” says she, “ placed me in a corner 
near her, where, whilst working, I was, as it were, 
in a little cell ; being thus separated from the other 
young persons, they did not disturb my peace, or 
perceive the operations of grace in my soul, for 
nothing could distract me from the interior conver¬ 
sation I held with our Lord. I frequently made 
Spiritual Communions, and this exercise moved me 
so strongly, and enkindled in my heart such flames 
of divine love, that even in the midst of my work 
it was sometimes difficult to conceal my emotions. 
Our Lord granted me the favor of being received 
into the Congregation of the Blessed Virgin ; my 
aunt was one of the Superiors.” 

The Association dated from 1817. It was founded 
by some zealous missionaries, to preserve and main- 


12 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


tain piety among young girls, by the practice of 
Christian virtues. It then numbered several hun¬ 
dred members; it flourished for a long time, and 
effected much good in Rennes. Although still in 
existence its members are less numerous than at 
that time. The reunions are held as formerly in 
an isolated chapel, where recently has been placed 
a picture of the Holy Face in memory of the deceased 
member, whose life we now relate. 

“ After the time of probation/’ says she, “ I was 
admitted by the Council to make my Act of Conse¬ 
cration. Ah ! how sweet was that day to my heart ! 
The ceremony reminded me of my First Commun¬ 
ion; I was, as on that day, dressed in white, and 
held in my hand a large, lighted wax candle. 
Kneeling before the director and another ecclesi¬ 
astic, and in the presence of my new sisters, five 
hundred in number, I renewed my Baptismal Vows, 
I promised to keep the Rules faithfully, and I made 
my Act of Consecration to the most Blessed Virgin, 
my good Mother. This Congregation was estab¬ 
lished for working-girls ; no vows were made, but 
the regulations drawn up for its guidance were 
replete with wisdom, and calculated to preserve 
piety in the hearts of young persons. Every fort¬ 
night the director gave excellent instructions.” 

The Divine Master, having for a certain length of 
time nourished His servant with spiritual milk, now 
willed to fortify her soul by feeding her on more 
solid food, and “ make her pass,” as she says, “ from 
Thabor to Calvary.” 

“ Consolations gave place to dryness and interior 
aridity. This state seemed to me very strange. 


THE LITTLE BRETONNE. 13 

What! to feel no more the love of God! . . . . 
Not having any experience in these ways of grace, I 
thought that by force of application, I could again 
taste the ineffable delight of those transports of 
divine love, wherewith I had been favored; but 
vain efforts on my part only served to make me 
sick. I spoke of the state of my soul to my con¬ 
fessor, who was not astonished, and he told me that 
my first fervor would return; but as I did not 
receive any more consolations, ungrateful to my 
Benefactor, I became relaxed in the way of per¬ 
fection, and my miserable heart turned again to 
creatures. I was not at peace ; my faults, although 
not grave, were most prejudicial, because our Lord 
required of me great generosity in His service.* ” 
During this season of painful trial she did what 
might have lost all. Seeing that her confessor 
appeared not to notice her faults, Perrine, docile 
and confiding child, as were children towards their 
parents in those days, asked her virtuous father to 
allow her to change her confessor. He, like a sin¬ 
cere Christian father, at first refused, and before 
giving the desired permission, he even consulted the 
very priest his daughter wished to quit, who was 
no other than their highly esteemed parish priest. 
After some solicitation he obtained his request by 
representing to the priest, that his daughter might 
make greater spiritual progress under the guidance 
of another confessor, who was then in great repute 
among pious persons. Notwithstanding these precau¬ 
tions, the penitent soon had cause to regret this step. 

* Document A, p. 10. 

2 



14 LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 

“ Though I received,” says she, “ excellent coun¬ 
sels from my new confessor I did not improve. 
When about the age of seventeen, the allurements 
of the world began to smile upon me ; lukewarm in 
the service of God, I gave myself up to amusements 
and the care of my toilet. But what wrought me 
the most harm was my relinquishing the practice of 
mental prayer, that powerful aid to the soul in van¬ 
quishing the passions. After the death of my 
mother, my eldest sister had conducted the affairs of 
the household. I, always proud, did not wish to 
submit to her authority, and, in consequence, often 
gave her trouble. My conscience reproached me for 
my infidelities, and the remembrance of those happy 
days of my childhood, would re-awaken desires to 
return to that God of goodness, who, when I was 
faithful to Him, had filled me with ineffable de¬ 
lights. I wished to return to Him, but my soul 
seemed chained by its evil inclinations. At last, I 
had recourse to her whom no one ever invokes in 
vain, to Mary, my tender Mother. 

“ The feast of the Purification was approaching ; 
as a preparation I made a Novena, and celebrated 
that beautiful day with all possible devotion, even 
offering a wax candle to be burned upon our Blessed 
Lady’s altar. Immediately I felt my heart changed, 
my bonds broken, and I recognized the necessity of 
returning to my former confessor. ‘ Ah ! my father/ 
said I, on meeting him, ‘ since I left you, virtue has 
fled far from me, I supplicate you to resume the 
care of my soul.’ He received me like the father of 
the Prodigal Son—with great charity. Soon after 
this, I attended an eight days’ retreat given by some 


THE LITTLE BRETONNE. 


15 


missionaries at a convent. It was there divine 
mercy awaited me. I had placed the happy result 
of my retreat under the Blessed Virgin’s protection, 
and my prayer was granted. Grace powerfully acted 
in my soul, hence, the instructions of the good mis¬ 
sionaries produced upon me the most salutary im¬ 
pression. I made a general confession ; contrasting 
my sins with the goodnesss of that God whom I 
had so long despised, then contemplating the wounds 
of my crucifix which seemed to reproach me for my 
perfidy, I felt my heart penetrated by the most 
lively sorrow, and shedding abundant tears, I prom¬ 
ised God inviolable fidelity.” * 


* Manuscript Life, etc., p. 17. 


CHAPTER IL 


THE VOCATION. 

a Ali ! my daughter, you have only commenced to make war 
upon your passions ; they must be conquered.” ( Words of her 
Confessor.) 

Perrine Éluère was at this time sixteen or sev¬ 
enteen years of age. Coming out of her retreat 
“ thoroughly converted,” as she thus expresses it, she 
attributed the signal grace-she had just received to 
the goodness of Mary. Thenceforth, to her first 
sentiments of filial tenderness for the Mother of 
Jesus, she added those of a boundless gratitude. 

“The Blessed Virgin,” says she, “became the 
object of my especial devotion. I admired the 
tenderness with which this divine Mother had drawn 
me from the abyss ; -and, my confidence augmenting, 
I asked her to obtain for me the grace of becoming 
a religious. Doubtless Mary heard my prayer, for 
soon yearnings to leave the world filled my soul. 
But what could I do ? I dared not speak of it to 
my confessor. One day, when the promptings of 
grace urging me to follow my vocation, were stronger 
than usual, filling me with anguish, I hastened to 
the altar of my Mother, the Virgin Mary, and lay 
16 


THE VOCATION. 


17 


before her maternal heart the emotions rending my 
own. The Blessed Virgin soon brought relief to my 
troubled soul. Just in front of her beautiful silver 
statue in her chapel was a confessional, ordinarily 
occupied by one of her zealous servants, the Vicar, 
of whom I have already spoken, he who had given 
me the character of a religious at the Catechism 
Conference where I was asked if I did not intend 
being a Carmelite. Whilst kneeling before the 
Blessed Virgin, supplicating her to assist me in this 
interior combat, I suddenly beheld the good priest 
come to his confessional, and it seemed to me that he 
made me a sign to enter it. I do not know how it 
happened, for I had never spoken to him of my 
soul, but, behold ! he now told me all that had taken 
place therein. ‘ You wish to become a religious, my 
child/ said he, ‘and to do so, it seems to you, that a 
mountain must be scaled, do I not guess rightly ? ’ 

“ Charmed in finding so unexpected a consoler, I 
frankly opened my heart to him ; he examined all, 
and declared that I had a true religious vocation. 
Encouraged by his counsels I sought my confessor, 
to whom I had not heretofore dared broach the 
subject. I told him of my desire of being admitted 
into a religious community. He answered : ? I am 
perfectly agreed to this, for I have always thought 
you would be a religious/ These words filled me 
with joy. A few days later he advised me to 
defer my departure until spring ; but alas ! I was to 
pass under the direction of another spiritual father, 
who did not so hastily decide to send me to a convent, 
and who, for five years, was to labor in breaking 
down the wall of my pride and self-love with the 


18 LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 

hammer of mortification, ere he deemed me worthy 
of entering the solitude of Carmel.” * 

The new director, of whom she here speaks, 
declared that it was his principle to send to convents 
only such aspirants as had been sufficiently tested, 
and who, when once they had entered the cloister, 
would never return to the world. 

Perrine fell under his guidance in the following 
manner. Her confessor, the parish priest, being 
threatened with loss of sight and obliged to go to 
Paris for treatment of the eyes, was absent a consid¬ 
erable length of time. As he knew his penitent 
needed an experienced guide, he directed her to a 
worthy ecclesiastic who often visited the religious 
communities of the diocese, rendering them great 
services—M. Pabbé Panager, who died parish priest 
of Saint-Étienne at Rennes. He was versed in the 
ways of the interior life, and had received from 
God an especial gift for the direction of religious 
vocations, which being known in the city, mothers 
disliked seeing their young daughters consult him. 
He gives us, in favor of young Perrine, a testi¬ 
mony too significant in its brevity to be omitted 
here. “ I was acquainted with her,” says he, “ only 
from the time she chose me as her director. She 
addressed herself to me because she wanted to 
become a religious. This induced me to receive her 
willingly, and I tried to help her. She was ever 
exact and docile. I loaned her books, and some¬ 
times privately conferred with her. I was always 
edified and decided to propose her as a postulant to 
Carmel.” 


* Document A, p. 12. 


THE VOCATION. 


19 


Perrine, we perceive, addressed herself to this 
man of God, making known to him her desires of 
being a Carmelite. He received her with charity, 
and encouraged her inclinations, but would not defi¬ 
nitely accept her until he had deeply pondered the 
matter. His counsels were so beneficial to the aspi¬ 
rant of Carmel, that after the return of her former 
confessor, she asked the Eev. Father Panager’s 
permission to remain un(Jer his spiritual direction. 
He again begged time to consider, and, at last, said 
to her : “ My daughter, I take charge of your soul, 
for the glory of God and your salvation.” 

“ These words,” says the Sister, “ inspired me 
with great confidence in his spiritual direction. He 
now wished to sound me, and asked me to give 
him, in writing, a knowledge of the manner in 
which our Lord, in the past, had led my soul, also, 
an account of my present dispositions. I wrote a 
little record which I gave him, and then he made 
me draw up a rule of life. After a lapse of time, I 
requested him to see about my reception in a con¬ 
vent. ‘Ah! my daughter/ said he, ‘you have only 
commenced to make war upon your passions ; they 
must be conquered!’ I was so eager to be a 
Carmelite that I would have passed through fire, 
had this been necessary in order to become one. I 
therefore began with renewed fervor to strive after 
my perfection.” 

All the confessor’s counsels made the deepest 
impression upon his penitent, and she “took notes 
of them so as not to forget them.” We shall cite, 
in the Sister’s own simple words, a few of these 
instructions. 


20 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


“He began by warning me against those little 
weaknesses too common with many pious individuals. 
‘My daughter/ said he, ‘do not consult several 
directors; if you wish me to be really your father, I 
want you to be really and truly my daughter ; be 
simple like a child, tell me all, but no disclosures of 
the heart elsewhere, for this is worse than useless ; 
never speak either of your confessor or of your 
penances ; go straight to God with a spirit of faith, 
and let there be no restless turning back on the souks 
part; all these relapses are straws for purgatory; 
strive well to know yourself and to know God, for 
the more you know Him, the more you will love 
Him; always have a joyous countenance, and be not 
like those sad ones, who seem, whilst bearing the 
yoke of the Lord, to be carrying a burden. Ah ! 
my daughter, upon what a beautiful road does our 
Lord invite you to travel ! Look forward to the 
end, and prepare yourself for the great designs of 
God upon your soul.* 

“ The foregoing is a specimen of the wise counsels 
I received from that father, and thanks be to God, 
they fructified in my soul. He loaned me books 
treating of prayer, the spirit of the interior life, 
and the lives of the Saints. All these spiritual 
helps enkindled in my heart a more lively desire 
of embracing the religious life; but when I ex¬ 
pressed to him my longings to leave the world, 
he would quietly reply : ‘ My daughter, the cowl 

does not make the monk/ This answer made me 
understand that there still was work before me. I 
continually besought my dear Protectress, the most 
Blessed Virgin Mary, to let me become a Carmelite 


THE VOCATION. 


21 


in a house where she was much loved ; I also often 
prayed to the glorious St. Joseph, and begged him 
to obtain for me the gift of prayer; and for this 
precious grace and others eagerly desired, especially 
that of a religious vocation, I made in his honor 
several little pilgrimages, and ate my bread dry on 
Wednesdays ; on Saturdays, I did the same in honor 
of the most Blessed Virgin. 

“I had great devotion to the Ploly Family; 
Jesus, Mary and Joseph, were the subjects of my 
loving contemplation. ‘ O, Blessed Family !’ I 
would say to them, ‘if I had had the happiness of 
living when ye were upon earth, most assuredly in 
whatsoever country ye dwelt, would I have has¬ 
tened to seek ye that I might have had the honor of 
being your little servant.’ 

“ My director loaned me the Life of St. Teresa of 
Jesus, and when I read the promise our Lord made 
her, at the foundation of her first convent, St. 
Joseph’s, at Avila, that He would dwell in that 
house, the Blessed Virgin and St. Joseph watching 
the gate on either side, oh ! then, my joy was 
extreme, I no longer hesitated in my choice of 
Carmel, the abode of the Holy Family. I often 
begged my confessor to assist the accomplishment of 
this affair, but, in order to try me, he would return 
only such evasive answers as : ‘We will see about it, 
God’s time has not yet come.’ Once he said to me : 
‘Do you think, my daughter, I would like to see 
you imitate those young girls who rush to a con¬ 
vent, and as soon return ? No, my child, when 1 
send you there, you will be prepared for it.’ ” 


22 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


Meanwhile, Providence furnished her occasions of 
satisfying, at least in part, her ardent desires. 

There came to reside next door to Éluère, the 
master-locksmith, a poor family consisting of three 
persons,—the father, a daily laborer, his blind wife 
and a little boy four or five years of age. “ They 
were so destitute, especially in winter when the hus¬ 
band had no work, that their poor little home much 
resembled the stable of Bethlehem. They were often 
without fuel or bread. 

“ So precious an opportunity of honoring the Holy 
Family, whom, to me, these good people represented, 
did not allow me to remain idle ; for, through God’s 
grace, I entertained for them much affection, and 
lavished on them the care their indigence required. 
From that time until my departure for Carmel, 
although my little savings did not enable me to 
satisfy all their wants, the Holy Family whom I 
served in their persons, rendered me so eloquent in 
pleading their cause with my friends and acquaint¬ 
ances that nothing was refused me for them. It 
was my delight to visit them and instruct them in 
their religion, the practice of which their extreme 
poverty had doubtless prevented. I induced them 
to go to confession, and likewise the husband to 
attend an eight days’ retreat, in a house set apart 
for this purpose. 

“If I loved this poor family, I was loved in 
return by them; so that whenever there was any 
difficulty between the husband and wife, which 
happened from time to time, I was called in to 
judge the case and restore peace.” 


THE VOCATION. 


23 


The Holy Family in Heaven well knew how to 
recompense the fidelity of its little servant, for Perrine 
made rapid progress in virtue. At first, her director 
permitted her to make the vow of chastity, which 
vow she renewed on every feast of the most Blessed 
Virgin ; she was also allowed to make a promise of 
obedience to her confessor. These privileges urged 
her to renewed efforts, in the practice of the interior 
virtues which would prepare her for the life of a 
religious,—mortification, humility, obedience and a 
love of prayer. Towards her young companions 
she exercised zeal and charity, applying herself 
especially to their spiritual progress. Let us listen 
to what she tells us of her pious and secret labors. 
“ I have always had,” says she, “ a great attraction 
for mental prayer; and convinced that no one can 
become a daughter of prayer without being the 
friend of mortification, I labored with great courage 
to acquire this virtue and to overcome my passions. 
The better to succeed, I marked my daily faults, and 
the number of my acts of sacrifice ; for which pur¬ 
pose I had always at my side two little strings of 
beads. The string of acts of mortification was com¬ 
posed of fifteen beads in honor of the fifteen myste¬ 
ries of the Holy Rosary; .and I believe that very 
often, when evening came, I had the happiness of 
being able to offer Mary this crown complete. 
Whatever was agreeable to my eyes, I refused them ; 
when most desirous of giving vent to my thoughts, 
I kept silence, and thus in other matters. I made 
my general examination and particular examen with 
a view to conquering my predominant passion, which 
was pride, and our Lord assisted my efforts.” 


24 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


God, who never allows Himself to be outdone in 
generosity, beholding this candid, faithful soul place 
itself unreservedly at His disposition, was pleased tP 
enrich it with the treasures of His grace. 

“1 had several times already, in the course of my 
life,” says she, “ experienced extraordinary move¬ 
ments of grace, but if I may thus express myself, 
our Lord was then giving me only a sample of those 
heavenly favors He was afterwards to shower upon 
me in such magnificent profusion. I had the happi¬ 
ness to receive Holy Communion not only every 
Sunday, but also three times during the week. It 
was in this Divine Banquet our Lord made those 
interior communications to my soul. As I had 
been earnestly charged by my director to tell him all 
that took place in my interior, I gave him, with the 
simplicity of a child, an account of these supernat¬ 
ural favors ; but he did not appear astonished. ‘ My 
daughter/ said he, ‘does not your soul belong to 
God? Let then, this good Master do in His house 
all that He wills/ These interior words of our 
Lord and heavenly communications continuing, I 
determined to submit a written account of them to 
my spiritual guide, for thus would I be preserved 
from illusion. 

“ He never spoke to me of these things, and this 
pleased me exceedingly, for these.graces of which I 
was so unworthy, caused me extreme confusion. 
One day, when I handed him one of these notes, it 
occurred to me that my humiliation would be greater 
were I to read him the contents, which set forth 
these wonderful evidences of our Lord’s love for me, 
notwithstanding my unworthiness. I told my con- 


THE VOCATION. 


25 


fessor what was passing in my mind. The reading 
of this note was indeed a humiliation, and it required 
no slight effort on my part to accomplish it. 

u But our.Lord, in His mercy, willed a counterpoise 
to these extraordinary graces, for a continuous 
succession of such might have occasioned me senti¬ 
ments of vanity. One day, I beheld in my soul, 
after Holy Communion, what seemed a wall, just 
ready to fall and crush me. I was told not to fear, 
that this wall would crush only my self-love. I 
have since understood that it was the emblem of a 
long series of humiliations and mortifications, that 
thorny path into which our Lord conducted me 
shortly after. 

“ As we can do nothing without grace, this divine 
Master implanted in my soul an ardent love of 
sufferings and humiliations. I fervently prayed for 
this gift, so that the wall of my pride, which pre¬ 
vented perfect union with God, might be entirely 
destroyed, and in its place, might bloom the violet 
of humility, whose perfume attracts Jesus to our 
hearts. 

“ I made known to my director these desires, and 
begged him not to spare me. ‘Father/ said I, ‘do 
not listen to the cries of nature, help me to subdue 
my pride/ As he never acted hastily in giving his 
decisions, he this time, as on former occasions, waited, 
doubtless to see, if this might not be a transient 
fervor too common with young persons. At last, he 
said to me one day : ‘ My daughter, I believe our 
Lord wishes you to walk out of the ordinary way ; 
go then before 'the Blessed Sacrament, and there in 
God’s presence, study what you can do to humble 
3 


26 LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 

yourself ; choose what seems to you the most perfect 
amongst humiliations; return and tell me all that 
has passed in your soul/ ” * 

Now began, what she pleasantly .calls, “ the 
journey on a road of humiliations.” These were 
never wanting, for every time she went to her direc¬ 
tor, he took care to put her humility to the test. 
One day, for example, he put her out of doors; 
another time the young girl, doubtless in obedience 
to him, was seen on a bright, beautiful Sunday, using 
a frightfully torn umbrella instead of a parasol, and 
thus exposing herself to public ridicule. On another 
occasion she brought to the workroom, the material 
(most carefully wrapped up) for making herself a 
garment. A burst of laughter followed the opening 
of the parcel, for it was the most fantastic, ridiculous 
looking stuff imaginable. 

“ When I went to see my director,” says she, “to 
return or get the books he usually loaned me, I 
always found awaiting me a goodly share of these 
humiliations ; but he never anticipated grace ; it was 
necessary for me to request a continuance of these 
services he so charitably rendered me. ‘Well/ he 
would say, ‘what does our Lord expect of you 
to-day? Have you any favor to ask of me?’ As I 
possessed great simplicity, and our Lord had given 
me the grace to walk in this path of humiliation, at 
this a multitude of things would come into my 
mind, the greater number of which were not at all 
practicable ; but the mere fact of mentioning them, 
and asking his permission to perform them, was for 
me, the keenest sort of humiliation. 


* Document A, p. 20. 


THE VOCATION. 


27 


“ When he noticed that I hesitated to speak freely 
to him, he reproved me, but always with gentle¬ 
ness. ‘ Be candid like a child/ he would say ; ‘ does 
not a child give vent to its thoughts, without stop¬ 
ping to reflect or examine them?* After listening 
to my account, he would allow those humiliations 
that were befitting. As to those that were not, he 
would, at first, appear to consent, and perceiving 
from my willingness to obey, that I had trinmphed 
over my pride, he would then revoke the per¬ 
mission.” 

One of the great benefits of this direction was the 
perfect knowledge it gave the director of the sincerity 
of his penitent, who so candidly lay before him the 
things which would mortify her most, and, by no 
means, made choice of them at will. Hence, she 
would sometimes say to him: “Ah! father, how 
much all this costs me ! ” “ My daughter,” he would 

answer, “ if it be painful to you to be thus humbled, 
I assure you it is not less so to me, to be obliged to 
humble you ; but have courage.” 

The Sister continues : “ When I had thus trodden 
pride under foot, our Lord inundated my soul with 
spiritual consolations ; but these were very necessary, 
for without such powerful assistance I would never 
have been able to walk in this thorny path. When¬ 
ever some especial act of mortification suggested 
itself, I felt so strongly urged by grace, that, had I 
resisted, I would have deemed myself unfaithful. To 
encourage myself I would say, it needs but resolu¬ 
tion and firmness to achieve, ‘ I can do all things in 
Him who strengthens me/ I comprehended that 
God demanded this sacrifice. Hence, notwithstand- 


28 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


ing all the bitterness and repugnance I felt, I often 
asked my director to feed my soul with this bread of 
humiliation, so unsavory to nature. 

“ Several times he sent me to the house of two 
pious and very discreet ladies, and, as he had already 
spoken to them of me, I found there occasions of 
subduing my pride and practising humility. But I 
was doubly mortified one day, during a visit to them, 
at a little event which took me by surprise. One of 
my friends, complaining to me that a certain person 
had treated her contemptuously, ‘Ah!’ said I, ‘you 
are very happy to find humiliations already prepared ; 
there are some souls who have to seek them/ ” * 
During this period of trial, the young girl found 
strength at the foot of the altar, in the most Blessed 
Sacrament. “ Ah ! ” says she, “ how I tasted the 
delights of spiritual consolation in visiting this good 
Saviour, especially at noon when He is most 
forsaken! How I unburdened my soul in His 
presence ! ” f 

On one occasion, when Perrine was praying before 
the tabernacle in the chapel of the Visitation, a 
friend who saw her, and carefully avoided being seen 
by her, says, that with head raised and eyes appar¬ 
ently fixed on some definite object, Perrine seemed 
as if communing with an invisible Being, whose 
presence transported her soul beyond this world. J 
She was also devoted to the Sacred Heart. “I 
often made,” says she, “ an act of reparation to the 
Sacred Heart to which I had great devotion. I 

* Document A, p. 21. 

f Manuscript Life, etc., p. 24. 

t Vie de Marie de Saint-Pierre de laSte Famille , p. 29, (1879). 


THE VOCATION. 


29 


conjured this Divine Heart to sever the bonds 
which held me captive in the world, so that I could 
take my flight to Carmel. I would then go to that 
chapel where I already had received so great graces 
concerning my vocation ; and kneeling at the feet of 
the Blessed Virgin, I would pour out my heart 
to her as does a child to the one it loves. I cease¬ 
lessly importuned her, saying, * Behold, my com¬ 
panions are being married; when, O my Mother/ 
will you give me Him whom I crave, your Son, 
you know that I desire no other spouse/ ” At 
the end of this record the Sister adds : “ This good 
Mother obtained for me the cure of an ailment, 
for which intention I had made a No vena to her. 
In thanksgiving, I had fifteen Masses offered in 
honor of the fifteen mysteries of the holy Rosary, as 
I had promised.” * 

* Document A, p. 22. 


2 * 


CHAPTER III. 


THE PROBATION. 

“ You will be a Carmelite.” * ( Words of our Lord.) 

Before being admitted as a postulant of Carmel, 
Perrine,- retained in the world by her confessor, was, 
according to the designs of God, to exercise amongst 
her companions a sort of humble apostleship, and to 
fulfil towards them the office of a wise directress. 

Let us listen to her own words on this subject : 
“ I continued to work at my pious aunt’s, who 
employed many young persons. They, seeing that I, 
with the assistance of God’s grace, practising virtue, 
always looked happy and contented, as my director 
had recommended, were inspired with confidence in 
me, and consulted me in their little troubles of con¬ 
science and practices of piety. I instructed them as 
to the manner of making mental prayer, and ad¬ 
vancing in virtue. Miserable sinner ! I had received 
so much from God, it was only just that I should 
lend a helping hand to others. One of these young 
girls made such rapid progress in piety that she 
soon outstripped her little directress, and became a 
religious before me. We conversed only of our 
Lord, the Blessed Virgin and St. Joseph, and upon 
30 


THE PROBATION. 


31 


the practice of virtue. Seeing myself, who stood so 
much in need of counsel, thus consulted, I began to 
fear that this was contrary to humility, and men¬ 
tioned it to my confessor; but he told me to con¬ 
tinue my instructions, as the piety of these young 
persons would be a powerful aid to my own. This 
calmed my fears. I did not tell them what was 
passing in my interior ; my secret was my own. 

“ It was easy for me to teach them the practice of 
mental prayer, for I had acquired great facility in 
this exercise by considering our Lord in the midst 
of my soul. This presence of the Divine Saviour 
was so sensible, that it seemed to me, I always 
beheld him in the depths of my heart.” 

We know that this youthful directress had re¬ 
served, in her own home, a little room, for the con¬ 
venience of these friends, and to which they had 
access, without coming in contact with the family. 
It was there she received them, to advise with them 
freely and candidly upon the spiritual needs of each, 
as they opened their hearts to her. She taught them 
how to meditate, and to enter into themselves ; warn¬ 
ing them of the dangers which might assail their 
innocence in the midst of that world where they 
were to remain ; and she urged them to walk 
courageously in the ways of solid piety. 

“ One of my young companions,” says she, “ was 
attacked by a very strange malady ; the physicians' 
remedies gave her no relief whatever. I was now 
inspired with the thought that if we had recourse to 
the most Blessed Virgin, the sick girl would be cured. 
I advised her to wear the ‘ Miraculous Medal/ which 
she did; together we made a Novena, and at the end 


32 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


of it her health was restored. These favors, received 
through Mary’s hands, inflamed our hearts with 
love for this good Mother. I continually supplicated 
her to break the bonds which held me captive, and 
for this intention I frequently offered wax candles to 
be burned upon her altar. As a preparation for her 
feasts I made Novenas, offering her crowns of flowers 
and other ornamentations ; in fine, I did everything 
in my power to honor her and move her maternal 
heart to give me her Son for my spouse. 

“ This Queen of Heaven did not remain indiffer¬ 
ent to my earnest petitions, all unworthy as they 
were of her acceptance. She began by removing 
an obstacle which had helped keep me with my 
father.” 

As we have seen, Perrine lost her mother at the 
age of twelve years. “ My good father,” says she, 
“ whose only thought was God and his work, quietly 
occupied himself at his locksmithing, without so 
much as thinking of renewing the marital tie. His 
life was a copy of that of St. Joseph; he went every 
morning to Mass, and in the evening to Benediction, 
when he could do so. He observed the abstinences 
and fasts of the Church, although his work was very 
laborious ; and he approached the Sacraments with 
most edifying faith and piety. The good God often 
tried him by tribulations which he bore with great 
patience.” 

His eldest son, Prosper, had left France. Being 
much attached to Mgr. de la Hailandière, he had fol¬ 
lowed him to America, and settled at Vincennes, in the 
United States, where he continued his trade of lock- 
smithing. Finding his business prospects favorable. 


THE PROBATION. 


33 


he remained there, and since has had no other com¬ 
munication with his father and family, except 
through letters. His life here, as when at home, is 
still that of a pious, edifying Christian. But, let us 
return to Perrine. “My eldest sister,” says she, 
“who had charge of the household, was attacked by 
a lingering malady; and it was just about this time 
my good father began to suspect that I wished to 
leave him, and embrace a religious life. This worried 
him greatly, as he was very unwilling to entrust his 
house to a servant. He did not conceal his anxiety 
from me, but told me he feared that I would run olf 
some day. I had not spoken very openly to him of 
my vocation, for I knew not when my director would 
grant me permission to start for Carmel. He (my 
director) still tried me in various ways ; and notwith¬ 
standing my ardent wishes, he gave me very little 
hope. In the meantime, my worthy father began to 
consider what was best for him to do, and mentioned 
his trouble to our pastor, who was also his confessor. 
This good priest liked my father very much, and 
used to say that he was the best of his parishioners. 
I had made known to him my desires of entering 
Carmel ; and it was he, who, striving to relieve my 
father’s perplexity, doubtless advised him to marry 
again. My father was rather reserved and diffident, 
and I am sure he felt intimidated at the mere 
thought; but the pastor took the management of the 
affair in his own hands, and made the first opening 
for him. At last, thanks to the Blessed Virgin, he 
found him an excellent wife. We received her 
kindly, which pleased my father.” * 


* Document A, p. 24. 


34 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


After this candid narration, the Sister gives in 
detail, the obstacles she had to overcome in order to 
follow her vocation : 

“ I now imagined that the end of my troubles was 
at last approaching, and the gate of Carmel was 
about to open. My pious aunt, with whom I 
worked, decided to take a trip to Le Mans, in order 
to be present at the blessing of the new Carmelite 
monastery, and also, to visit one of the nuns who 
was very dear to her. She told me I was to accom¬ 
pany her. This news filled me with joy, and I 
begged my confessor to allow me to profit by so 
precious an opportunity of carrying out my wishes. 
He consented, and gave me a letter for the Rev¬ 
erend Mother Prioress, telling me I could remain in 
the monastery at Le Mans, if the Superioress would 
receive me. He then gave me his blessing. I 
started with my good aunt, and, on the evening pre¬ 
vious to the ceremony, we arrived at the Carmelites’, 
who received us very kindly Next day, I assisted at 
the blessing of their new refectory and cemetery. 
There was also a reception of the habit that day. 
Enclosure being suspended at this time, we visited 
the interior of the convent. I entered one of the 
cells, and I saw those dear sisters, several of whom 
were from my part of the country. Nothing could 
have given me more pleasure than this visit. Finally, 
I had the honor of a private interview with the 
Reverend Mother Prioress, to whom, on the previous 
day ; I had handed my director’s letter, and I 
expressed to her my great desire of being a Car¬ 
melite. She told me she had been forbidden by the 
Bishop to receive any postulants, the house being 


THE PROBATION. 


35 


then very small, and all the cells occupied. How¬ 
ever, I consulted her about my vocation, making 
known to her my interior dispositions, and she was 
convinced that the Lord, in spite of my extreme 
unworthiness, had chosen me to be a daughter of 
Carmel. She told me the Rules of the Order, and 
expressed regret at not being able to admit me, as no 
steps could be taken without the Bishop’s permission, 
and he was then absent from the diocese. She spoke 
in the highest terms of the Carmel at Orleans, 
whence she had come to found this one at Le Mans, 
and advised me to apply there.” 

The disappointed aspirant saw herself obliged to 
return to her parents and the world. She now asked 
her confessor to write to the Carmelites of Orleans, 
or to those at Blois, but he seemed in no haste 
to do so. 

“ I would frequently urge this request,” says she, 
“and he must indeed have tired of me; but his 
evasive answers: < We will see to it/ or ‘God’s time 
has not yet come,’ caused me much suffering. One 
day I went in a chapel dedicated to St. Martin; 
being his feast his relics were exposed. I kissed 
them with great devotion. I had already received 
Holy Communion that morning in honor of this 
great Saint, of whom I had then but slight knowl¬ 
edge, as I knew not even what sections of France he 
had evangelized. This, however, was a matter of no 
consequence. In anguish of heart, with all simpli¬ 
city and fervor, I implored his assistance, framing my 
prayer in words somewhat as follows: ‘Ah! my 
good St. Martin, behold my afflictions ! I long to 
consecrate myself to God in the religious life, and 


36 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


no one wants to assist or receive me. Oh ! I am 
sure that if you were upon earth, your charity 
would be touched at my sorrows, you would help 
me!’ ... I conjured him to accept me in his 
diocese, if it contained any religious of the Order I 
desired to enter ; I confided to him my trials, and, 
without remembering clearly all I said to him, I 
have a perfect recollection of praying with great 
confidence and a heart penetrated with grief. Hence, 
notwithstanding my unworthiness, he heard my 
prayer, for I have no doubt it was he who obtained 
for me the happiness of becoming a Carmelite at 
Tours. I had never asked my confessor to send me 
to the convent at Tours, for I was not aware there 
were Carmelites in that city until I was received by 
them. 

“One day,” says she, “after Holy Communion, I 
had a vision. Our Lord having gathered my soul 
into His Divine Heart, it seemed to me that I saw 
many persons chained therein by links of gold, and 
all wearing a cross. They, doubtless, represented 
religious, for I recognized one of my friends who 
was in a convent. I appeared to be chained with 
these souls, and I prayed our Lord to give me a cross 
likewise. He made me understand that I was to 
conform my will to His, and await with resignation 
the accomplishment of His designs ; that this was 
my cross for the present. ‘But when you have 
entered religion/ said He, ‘I will give you another.’ 
This promise remained engraven in my memory,, so 
that when I became a postulant of Carmel, finding 
myself sick a few days after my arrival, I said: 
‘ Perhaps this is the cross our Lord promised me/ 


THE PROBATION. 


37 


But poor idiot that I was, this was a mere straw 
to bear in comparison with the cross the good Master 
had reserved for me after my profession. I am con¬ 
vinced that the work of Reparation, which later the 
Lord revealed to me, was the predicted cross, for I 
found it in the Sacred Heart of Jesus; in this 
furnace of love did He first speak to me of that 
work which was to cost me so many sighs, and 
prayers, and tears.” 

She had henceforth great devotion to the Sacred 
Heart of Jesus. “It became the especial object of 
my worship,” says she, “ and I urged all my com¬ 
panions to the same. As my sister was sick, I asked 
her to have a Novena of Masses celebrated in repara¬ 
tion for the outrages offered the Heart of Jesus in the 
Sacrament of His love ) to obtain her cure, if such 
were the will of God. She consented, and I had 
these Masses said in the chapel of the Visitation, 
because the high altar there was dedicated to the 
Sacred Heart, and also, because it was to a religious 
of this Order that our Lord revealed the devotion. 
I assisted at these Masses, and received extraordi¬ 
nary graces, an account of which I gave in writing 
to my director. I did not keep a memorandum for 
myself, my sole care being how to correspond with 
the immense love of our Lord, which was manifested 
to me in Plis Sacred Heart ; hence, I have but a con¬ 
fused remembrance of them, for it seemed to me 
that my soul was entirely rapt in God ; but I have 
always distinctly remembered that our Lord showed 
me a cross, telling me that upon it He crucified all 
His spouses. I know not if I were frightened at 
this, but He added a few words very nearly as fol- 
4 


38 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


lows: 1 Console yourself, my daughter, you will be 
crucified only after Me; the nails will enter my 
flesh ere touching yours/ No doubt, He wished me 
to understand by this, that haying Himself first 
endured the torments of the Cross, He had thus 
lessened them for His disciples, who were to carry 
it after Him.” 

For a certain time our Lord attracted her to a kind 
of prayer, which she found “ blissful.” He then 
made her understand that this grace was about to be 
taken from her ; and it was indeed succeeded by a 
trying state of spiritual dryness. “ Our Lord,” says 
she, “ according to His good pleasure and the needs 
of my soul, made me pass from Thabor to Calvary ; 
but being better instructed in the ways of God than 
I was in my childhood, I bore this painful trial 
without injury to my spiritual progress.” A gift 
she prized above these extraordinary favors, was 
that of being able to help the indigent sick. “ Our 
Lord,” says she, “ gave me a great desire to bestow 
alms. I had a little purse of my own, which I was 
free to use as I chose, without troubling my father ; 
so I gave sometimes to our Lord, sometimes to the 
Blessed Virgin in the persons of the poor. 

“ There came to reside near us a young women 
who was taken sick shortly after her marriage ; she 
lingered for some time, and it devolved upon me to 
assist and prepare her for death. I placed near her 
bed an image of the most Blessed Virgin, and no 
doubt this good Mother came to her aid, in the last 
terrible combat. Being quite young, I had not often 
been in the presence of death and was timid at 
thoughts of it ; but the good God sustained me, for 


THE PllOBATION. 


39 


this poor, afflicted lady, whom I encouraged by 
words of consolation, wanted me always at her side. 
One night she sent for me, to ask me if I considered 
her near death. I told her that the Lord would soon 
call her to Himself, she was at the last extremity. I 
do not remember whether this was the same night in 
which she was suddenly frightened at something, 
the angel of darkness, no doubt, coming to tempt 
her at the last moment. 6 1 see/ said she, ‘ a large 
black cat at the foot of my bed/ I perceived 
nothing, but sprinkled the bed with holy water. 
‘ I see it still/ said she ; after a second aspersion the 
object vanished; doubtless constrained to take flight. 
Whilst we were praying for this poor women, she 
expired before my eyes—truly an edifying death, as 
she had already received the last Sacraments. The 
good God permitted that it should also devolve 
upon me, with the assistance of one of my friends 
to shroud her. I found this act of charity very 
trying to my feelings, but there was no one else to 
render this service. The Lord assisted me, for I was 
very much frightened, having never before come in 
such close contact with the dead.* 

“ The Divine Master, in His great mercy, thus 
gave me the means of atoning for my numberless 
sins, which no doubt had been the obstacles retard¬ 
ing my entrance into a religious community. But, 
at last, God’s time was near at hand, I begged all 
the Saints to intercede for me, and I often had 
recourse to our holy mother Teresa. In my father’s 
room hung a picture of her ; and when at table, my 


Document A, p. 29. 


40 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


eyes were constantly bent upon it, sometimes to the 
neglect of my dinner. My father, who by this 
time, knew I wished to be a Carmelite, often spoke 
of it as we were dining. He once made me laugh 
heartily at one of his notions about the bed I would 
have to sleep on at the convent.” 

The good man had probably heard some of those 
anecdotes so common in the world, concerning the 
austerities practiced by the virgins of Carmel. One 
day he laughingly said to his daughter, “ If the 
Carmelites’ sheets are, as it is said, nailed at the 
four corners, how will you manage to get into a bed 
like that and go to sleep ? ” “ Oh ! ” said she, " this 

is the least of my cares.” 

“ I was not content with invoking only our holy 
mother Teresa. Whilst reading her life I wrote 
down the names of her confessors, and of all the 
holy persons who assisted her in the Reform, and of 
these I composed a litany, without even examining to 
see whether they were all canonized. St. John of the 
Cross headed this list, to which I added the Saints 
for whom I had the most devotion, that thus (so 
many powerful advocates pleading my cause) the gates 
of Carmel would at last open to me. They were not 
indeed insensible to this act of confidence and sim¬ 
plicity ; for, on the eve, after the first Vespers of the 
Feast of all the Saints of Carmel, I was ushered into 
this happy asylum, the goal of all my desires.” * 

Another trial waS in store for her. Her director 
was taken sick and unable to hear her confessions. 
Not caring just now to worry the poor priest about 


* Document A, p. 31.—Manuscript Life, p. 33. 


THE PROBATION. 


41 


the furtherance of her desires thus again deferred, 
she made a final touching appeal to Mary. 

“ I was inspired/’ says she, “ to go on a Pilgrim¬ 
age to Our Lady of la Peinière, who had already 
obtained for me a signal favor from Heaven. Her 
chapel, six leagues from Pennes, belonged to the 
Parish of Saint-Didier. 

“ As I was very well acquainted with the parish 
priest of that place, and had a friend residing there, 
I easily obtained permission to go. I started full 
of confidence, determined to ask Mary as a proof of 
my vocation, the cure of my director, and to beseech 
her to break my bonds. ‘ Ah ! ’ said I, 1 1 am like 
a bird in a cage, vainly struggling to find an open¬ 
ing whence it may escape.’ In the conveyance I 
met a priest with whom I entered into conversation. 
I spoke to him of the Blessed Virgin, and perceiving 
that he was pleased at this, I related several anec¬ 
dotes touching the glory of our good Mother, and I 
also told him about the Arch-Confraternity of the 
Sacred Heart of Mary. All this afibrded me great 
happiness, for the Blessed Virgin was my delight, 
and I loved to extend her honor as far as lay 
in my power. At last I reached Saint-Didier’s. 
Having performed my devotions in that Church, 
our Lord, after my thanksgiving, deigned to com¬ 
municate Himself to my soul touching my vocation. 

“ But, in order to make clear what I am going to 
narrate, I must mention one of the reasons causing 
me no little anxiety lest I should be refused admis¬ 
sion to Carmel. My parents were not rich, and 
could give me only a small dowry of six hundred 
francs. I had asked a clergyman of my acquain- 
4* 


42 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


tance, a person of means, to aid me; but, expressing 
regret, he said that he was unable to do so, on 
account of some unusual expenses he was just then 
obliged to meet. 

“ Perhaps I had lacked confidence in divine Prov¬ 
idence. The communication our Lord made me, 
and a few words of which I will transcribe, filled 
me with consolation. I think I remember that this 
time also He showed me a cross, and, answering my 
perplexities, said : ‘ Is not the vocation I have given 
you more than the dowry ? y — making me thus com¬ 
prehend that if His infinite mercy could, bestow upon 
me this first grace of inestimable price, how easily 
He could grant me the second, which was far 
inferior. He afterward said to me; ‘Go to My 
Mother, it is through her I will grant your 
petition. ’ ” 

Full of faith and hope, Perrine continued her 
pilgrimage. The miraculous statue had been placed 
in a new and more spacious chapel, situated a quar¬ 
ter of a league from the parish church. The young 
girl gave most cheerfully her little offering towards 
the building of this chapel, not yet completed. For 
nine consecutive days she made her visits to the 
shrine, reciting the first part of the Rosary on her 
way thither, the second in the chapel at the Blessed 
Virgin’s feet, and the third whilst returning. 
“Oh! how I prayed this good Mother to sunder 
my bonds and let me follow my vocation! What 
sweetness I tasted near this dear Consoler of the 
afflicted, and with what filial confidence I poured 
out my heart to her ! She did not remain deaf to 
my entreaties, and her divine Son bestowed upon 


THE PKOBATION. 


43 


me very great graces during that Novena. I regret 
not having preserved, for the glory of the most 
Blessed Virgin, the details in writing. I think I 
remember our Lord ordered that I be permitted to 
do His will without further delay. I minutely noted 
down all that passed in my soul, and the long letter 
this record made, I took before the miraculous statue 
of the most Blessed Virgin that she might bless it, 
and cause it to touch the heart of my director, for 
whom it was intended. ‘ Oh ! my good Mother/ I 
said to her in all simplicity, ‘ I do not wish to spend 
this winter working on robes of vanity. I want to 
be praising thy divine Son. Behold! I resign to 
thee the instruments of my trade.’” And she 
deposited at Mary’s feet her scissors and needles. 
Returning to Rennes, she found her director in 
better health, and* the letter she handed him had the 
desired effect, for, though he did not let it appear, he 
was deeply impressed, and began to make the most 
earnest efforts in furtherance of his penitent’s voca¬ 
tion. He seemed at first opposed to her becoming a 
Carmelite, and spoke to her of the Hospital-Sisters 
of Rennes. 

“I felt no attraction for that Order,” says the 
the Sister, “ though I would have consented to enter 
it, rather than remain in the world. Oh ! how great 
was my perplexity ! I was not acquainted with any 
community of Carmelites, except at Le Mans, where 
they were unable to receive me. As to their having 
houses at Tours and Morlaix, I had never even 
heard of them. I went to my little oratory, and 
kneeling before the images of St. Teresa and St. 
John of the Cross, I said to them: ‘ Alas! you will 


44 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


not take me! ,M She was also troubled concerning 
the dowry, fearing the lack of the necessary amount 
might prove a great bar to her admission ; and, for 
this reason, she resolved to apply to the venerable 
priest, who for two years and a half had been her 
confessor, and to whom, during that period of her 
spiritual life, she had more than once given cause of 
annoyance. He was at this time seventy-seven years 
of age, but his faculties were unimpaired, and he was 
as efficient in the duties of his ministry as a young 
priest. 

“ Meeting me one day in the city, he inquired if I 
really desired to become a religious. Not wishing 
to receive spiritual instruction so publicly, in the 
middle of the street, I evaded the question, deter¬ 
mined to give him a frank, simple answer, at a more 
suitable time and place. As he was rich I hoped to 
interest his charity in my favor, and one afternoon, 
I went to his house for that purpose. There our 
Lord awaited me to crown with success this long and 
weary series of delays. I reverently knelt at the 
feet of the venerable priest, and told him of my 
pecuniary embarrassment; but he, not knowing how 
much the soil of my poor soul had been furrowed 
during these five years, still wished to test me, and 
his reception of me was a most unexpected and pain¬ 
ful humiliation. He at first continued to recite his 
Breviary, without so much as seeming to notice my 
presence or hear what I said ; and in a few minutes, 
he ordered me to rise and leave the house. I 
respected the will of God in that of His minister, 
and He recompensed my resignation, for this trial 
was nearly the last I had to endure in the world; 


THE PROBATION. 


45 


and the worthy priest, approving of my choice, gen¬ 
erously made me a little gift. 

“Only eight days had passed since I returned 
from my pilgrimagè ; and, as I have said, the last 
time I saw my director he had seemed almost decided 
to send me to the Hospital-Sisters. Oh ! what a 
perplexity and painful alternative was mine ! I so 
ardently desired to dwell in the solitude of Carmel, I 
so loved the spirit of retirement, silence and prayer, 
and were I to enter the former community, my 
duties would be those of nursing the sick, and, what 
to me was most painful, preparing the dead for 
burial, mere thoughts of which filled me with 
fear. 

“ The Lord in His goodness relieved me from this 
anxiety; He had promised to be propitious to me 
through the intercession of His holy Mother, and 
He kept His word ; the ninth day after my pilgrim¬ 
age, at the moment of Holy Communion, He, in 
His infinite mercy, communicated Himself to my 
soul in interior words very much as follows : i My 
daughter, I love you too much to abandon you 
longer to your perplexities ; you will not be a Hos¬ 
pital-Sister, this is only a trial; you will be a Car¬ 
melite , and measures are already being taken for your 
reception’ And a powerful voice repeated several 
times, ‘ You will be a Carmelite.’ I think oyr Lord 
added: ‘A Carmelite at Tours.’ But having no 
knowledge of that place, really ignorant that there 
were or ever had been Carmelites at Tours, and 
fearing all this might be an illusion, because I sup¬ 
posed my director had given up the idea of sending 
me to the Carmelites, I said to myself, how shall I 


46 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


act, what shall I do? However, I felt obliged to 
write out this communication and take it to my 
director as usual. I think my feelings were rather 
those of dejection as I handed him my little letter, 
but oh ! infinite goodness of my God ! how great 
was my astonishment when he said : ‘ My daughter, 
you are received by the Carmelites of Tours/ Oh ! 
what delightful news, what joy to my heart, the long 
deferred day of happiness was mine at last ! And 
what thankfulness to our Lord and His holy 
Mother, who had so promptly granted the object of 
my pilgrimage ! ” 

The letter she presented to Our Lady of La 
Peinière, before handing to her director, had de¬ 
cided him to write to the Rev. Mother Prioress of 
Tours, of whom he had some slight knowledge. 

“ This good Mother, full of charity,” says the 
Sister, “ answered immediately that she would re¬ 
ceive me. But how had all this been accom¬ 
plished? Why does our Lord in so marked a 
manner call me to Tours, distant sixty leagues from 
my birthplace, when there are Carmelites at Nantes 
and Morlaix, nearer my family ? I asked my con¬ 
fessor if he was in communication with that house, 
and he told me no; that when passing through 
Tours, he had thought of paying the Carmelites a 
visit, but had not done so, nor was he acquainted 
with them. Still less had the Rev. Mother Prioress 
brought it about, since she was much surprised that 
a priest whom she knew only by hearsay, should 
propose a postulant to her. What then was the 
solution of this mystery ? Ah ! I now understood, 
St. Martin did not forget my prayers, and doubtless 


THE PROBATION. 


47 


befriended me, when on his feast day, kneeling before 
his relics exposed in his chapel, I confided to him 
my troubles, and the care of finding me a nook in 
his diocese. There is also another noticeable inci¬ 
dent connected with this. The Rev. Mother Pri¬ 
oress deferred my entrance until after the Feast of 
All Saints, two months, which to my ardent long¬ 
ings seemed a very distant period ! IS evertheless, 
this date was not fixed by chance, for 1 left Brit¬ 
tany on the very Feast of St. Martin, who thus 
wished to show me in a striking manner that he 
was my liberator.” 

There still remained a difficulty, the question of 
dowry, but this was also soon settled. “ As I have 
said,” continues the Sister, “ my father was a lock¬ 
smith, and, though doing a prosperous business, he 
had but little ready means, God having sent him trials 
drawing so heavily upon his purse as to consume all 
his earnings. My eldest sister was still sick ; my 
eldest brother had been draughted to serve in the 
army, and to furnish a substitute, we had been obliged 
to raise two thousand francs. Towards this fund my 
worthy aunts contributed ; hence, the family found it 
impossible to give me more than six hundred francs. 
But our Lord had made me understand that He, 
Who gave the vocation, would also provide the 
dowry; which indeed came to pass, for the most 
Blessed Virgin, with a generosity worthy of her 
munificence, returned the alms I had offered for the 
construction of her new chapel. A young lady 
named Mary, with whom my director had made me 
practice the virtue of mortification, when he was 


48 LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 

preparing her to enter a religious Community, 
liberally made up the deficiency. 

“ Ah ! truly had our Lord said : ‘ Address your¬ 

self to my Mother : it is through Her I will grant you 
all’ Remarkable words, of which I shall ever pre¬ 
serve the precious remembrance. What could I do 
in token of my gratitude to the most Blessed Virgin 
Mary, for so many graces received through her 
mediation ? Longing to acquit myself of this 
sacred duty, I requested and obtained permission to 
return to her holy chapel of La Peinière, and make 
a No vena of thanksgiving. I there bade farewell 
to that powerful Patroness, recommending to her 
the new state of life I was about to embrace, and 
which would bind me to her, and to her divine 
Son by such endearing ties. In the simplicity of 
my soul, I had asked to give me that dear Son for 
my Spouse, and she had consented, in spite of my 
unworthiness ; my heart had nothing more to desire, 
save the happy day of these spiritual nuptials.” * 

On her return, as though to celebrate in advance 
what she termed, ( ‘ her nuptials,” the numerous 
family of the future Carmelite gathered around her, 
for the last time, in a pleasant and festive reunion,— 
a touching custom of Catholic Brittany, and well 
worthy of the Christian sentiments animating the 
young girl’s father and all her virtuous relatives. 
Although deeply touched at parting from Perrine, 
none of them would have had her return, for 
they beheld in her perseverance, happiness for her, 
and benedictions for themselves; and their hopes 
were to be more than realized. 


* Document A, p. 39. 


THE PROBATION. 


49 


“ As for myself, I impatiently awaited the day of 
my departure. They were expecting a nun to pass 
through Rennes, on her way to Touraine, and under 
her care, was I to make my journey; but she 
had not arrived, and I so longed to set out for 
Carmel, that my good father decided to leave his 
work a few days, and take me to Tours, olfering me 
himself to the Lord, for he was a man, who, God’s 
will once manifest to him, knew how to conform 
his own .thereto, sacrificing all. Joyfully I bade 
farewell to my family and country ; though I loved 
my family, and was beloved by them, my ardent 
desire to serve the Holy Family in Carmel, com¬ 
pletely swallowed up those feelings of anguish con¬ 
sequent upon a separation so painful to nature. 

u I also went to take leave of the priest who had 
directed me in my vocation. He assured me of my 
perseverance, saying to me, that the step would be 
final, he was confident of it. However, fearing that 
the path in which our Lord had heretofore led me 
might not be sufficiently in harmony with that of a 
Community life, he said to me: ‘My daughter, 
try to follow the ordinary course ; when a religious 
is conducted in an extraordinary manner, she is 
obliged to ask extraordinary confessors, and this is 
not convenient in a Community.’ Then as a part¬ 
ing prediction he added: ‘Do quickly what you 
have to do ; hasten to sanctify yourself, for I fore¬ 
see that your career will not be long.’ He gave 
me other useful counsels, and likewise, his parting 
blessing.” * 


* Document A, p. 40. 

5 


CHAPTER IV. 


CAEMEL OF TOURS. 

u There I found the Divine Infant Jesus and the Holy Family.’* 
( Words of the 'postulant.) 

“On the 11th of November, 1839, feast of St, 
Martin, my beloved protector, accompanied by my 
virtuous father, I left Rennes on my way to Tour¬ 
aine, my future home ; and reaching Tours on the 
13th, at five o’clock in the evening, I went at once to 
the monastery. It is worthy of note that St. Martin 
seemed thus presenting me to all the Saints of Car¬ 
mel, for it was the vigil of this Feast. I felt sure 
these good Saints would not reject me on so propi¬ 
tious an occasion ; I had fervently prayed them to 
admit me into their Order, and they could not have 
given me a more positive pledge of my perseverance 
than by receiving me on such a day.” 

Our young Bretonne observes, that she had no 
curiosity to go sight seeing in the city before enter¬ 
ing the precincts of the cloister. “ This,” says she, 
“was of no interest to me; on leavjng our con¬ 
veyance, my father took me immediately to the 
Carmelites, gave me his blessing, and with deep 
emotion kissed me for the last time, saying that the 
50 


CARMEL OF TOURS. 


51 


desire of conforming to God’s will was all that 
could induce him to offer such a sacrifice. Poor 
father! God will know how to recompense your 
admirable resignation !... Soon the door opens, 
and my father resigns me to this new family that 
stands waiting to receive me. If, at that moment, 
I made to God the sacrifice of a good father, He 
gave me in return a good mother, who, in her great 
charity, was to render to my soul services of inesti¬ 
mable value.” 

This was the most Rev. Mother Mary of the 
Incarnation, then Prioress, and also Mistress of 
Novices. 

“ It seems to me, that one day whilst still in the 
world, our Lord made me understand, that the 
mother He destined for me, would be especially 
enlightened to direct me in accordance with His 
will. It is certain that such was the case, as soon 
as she became acquainted with my interior disposi¬ 
tions, though this knowledge was not imparted to 
her suddenly, but by degrees, and as God judged 
proper for His glory and the salvation of my 
soul. 

“The first thing our very Rev. Mother did, 
after I had embraced my new sisters, was to lead 
me to the feet of Mary, my good Mother, to place 
myself under her powerful protection, and thank 
her for admitting me into her holy Order of Car¬ 
mel. In a very little while it was the hour of rec¬ 
reation. My sisters invited me to sing some stanzas 
which they showed me. It was not necessary for 
them to coax me, for long since had I sung these 
lines in advance,, whilst awaiting the happy day 


52 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


of my entrance into Carmel. They began as fol¬ 
lows : 

‘ Let us praise God,—I have the shelter sure,— 

For which so long hath sighed my heart ; 

With God alone here will I live secure, 

The worldly and the wicked far apart.’ 

I knew thus some fifteen stanzas, and sang them 
with so happy an air that no one thought of inter¬ 
rupting me.” 

The new comer seemed in no wise disposed to 
curtail their number, when, all at once, the Rev. 
Mother Prioress, who had been absent, entered the 
room. Finding one singing and the others atten¬ 
tively listening, she judged it a fitting opportunity 
for giving the new postulant her first trial. “ You 
have indeed,” said she to the latter, “ been in quite 
a hurry to show off your little talent ! . . .” An 
embarrassing silence ensued, which was broken only 
by the Mother Prioress turning towards the singer 
and saying : “ Let us see if you know any more.”— 
“ Oh ! yes, Rev. Mother,” she replied, “ I have kept 
the best for you ; ” and behold, she starts off again. 
Nothing in her manner had betrayed the least dis¬ 
appointment or emotion, which conduct was evi¬ 
dence to the Community, that both by virtue and 
natural disposition, this little Bretonne’s character 
was cheerful and happy. 

. “This cheerfulness,” she candidly says, “was 
already for me a proof of my vocation to Carmel. 
I well knew that our holy Mother Teresa never 
wished sad or melancholy persons to enter the Order. 
On the following day, I was taken to assist at the 


CARMEL OF TOURS. 


53 


Divine Office ; there I had rather a laughable temp¬ 
tation, and as it is the only one I remember ever 
haying felt against my vocation, I will relate it here. 
Seeing the hebdomadary, the chantresses, versiclers, 
and certain others of the religious, go to the middle 
of the choir, make profound inclinations, say a few 
Latin words, and return to their places, then, in a 
short time, others follow their example, I was 
somewhat frightened at so much ceremonial, and 
began to think that I would never have sense 
enough to conform to it, or know when it would be 
my turn to do thus. So I said to myself, perhaps 
it would be better for me to take my little bundle 
and return to Brittany. But then the question pre¬ 
sented itself, how could I do this ? I have only 
forty francs in my purse, and this amount is prob¬ 
ably not sufficient for so long a journey, besides, I 
am forgetting that I have already given it to the 
good Mother Prioress. Well, I must have patience 
and wait awhile. I was taken to the confessional,— 
another trial ! I perceive, placed upon the usual 
grating, a sheet of tin perforated with small holes, 
and I am told I must speak to the confessor through 
this—well, let us have patience again, and see how 
we will succeed here. Introduced now into the 
Novitiate, there I found the Divine Infant Jesus 
and the Holy Family, cherished objects of my 
heart. Henceforth, this Holy Family, for whom I 
had left the world that I might serve It in Carmel, 
which I knew was especially devoted to It, made me 
find all things easy and agreeable, and it seemed to 
me that I had already lived there several years. I 
then clearly understood by my own experience, that 
5 * 


54 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


there is not only vocation of Order, but also voca¬ 
tion of especial Community, for I had not the 
slightest attraction for another convent ; but on the 
contrary, from the moment of my entering Carmel 
of Tours, I felt that I was just where God wanted 
me.” * 

Let us, for a few moments, deny ourselves the 
charm and interest of the good Sister’s narrations, 
to become better acquainted with this house into 
which Providence has just introduced her. 

The monastery of Tours is not one of the least 
among those, which have been founded in France 
by the daughters of St. Teresa ; and we can see in 
this an especial mark of St. Martin’s protection over 
his Episcopal city. Between the Reformer of Car¬ 
mel and the Thaumaturgus of Gaul, divine love 
had formed, during the life of St. Teresa, a bond of 
union, which her biographer fails not to notice : 

“ To-day,” wrote the seraphic virgin of Avila, “ is 
the Feast of St. Martin, to whom I have great 
devotion, because, during his octave, I have many 
times received signal graces from our Lord.” f 

It was also, as we have seen, on the Feast of this 
holy Bishop that our young Bretonne received 
marked assistance towards the following of her 
religious vocation, and, behold, during the octave of 
the Feast, she, at last, finds, not far from the tomb 
of this glorious Apostle, the humble asylum wherein 
shall be consummated her sanctification. 

Was it not by an especial design of Providence 
that the city of St. Martin was, as we shall see, 

* Document A, p. 42. 

f Life of St. Teresa, by Ribeira, b. IV, chap. XIII. 


CARMEL OF TOURS. 


55 


among the first in France to be enriched with a con¬ 
vent of Carmelites, imbued with the purest Teresian 
spirit ? 

Our readers will, no doubt, be grateful to us for 
giving a sketch of the origin of this monastery, and 
the principal phases of its history, up to the period 
of Sister Saint-Pierre’s arrival. 

The Foundation of Carmel of Tours dates back 
to the year 1608, four years after that of the first 
convent of Paris, established by Cardinal de Berulle, 
and Madame Acarie (Blessed Marie of the Incarna¬ 
tion). A relative of the latter, M. de Fontaines, Cas¬ 
tellan of Bouziers, in the vicinity of Tours, wished 
to found a convent of this Order at Tours, to gratify 
tke pious longings of one of his daughters, who, 
having tried the life of Carmel, was forced to leave 
on account of her delicate health. He hoped that 
this beloved daughter, received there in the quality 
of a benefactress, might thus be able to live near 
him. Madame Acarie negotiated with him all 
the arrangements of this foundation and Cardinal 
de Berulle consented to send thither Mother Anne 
of St. Bartholomew, as Prioress, and seven other 
Sisters. Anne of St. Bartholomew was that de¬ 
voted friend who assisted St. Teresa in her dying 
moments, and received her last breath. She and 
several other Carmelite nuns had been brought 
from Spain to France by Cardinal de Berulle, 
and he could not have granted a greater favor 
to Carmel of Tours, than that of sending her as its 
first Prioress. The annals of the monastery thus 
relate the event; “We left Paris on the 5th of May, 
and reached here on the 9th. The journey was most 


56 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


irksome, but St. Teresa appeared to her faithful 
friend and consoled her. Walking at her side upon 
a road strewn with thorns, (though neither Mother 
Anne nor her companions seemed wounded by them,) 
St. Teresa said to her: ‘Walk courageously, I will 
aid you/ ” The Carmelites, on their arrival, took 
possession of the place prepared for their reception, 
and the Blessed Sacrament was put up on the 18th 
of May, Sunday within the octave of the Ascen¬ 
sion.* 

That same day, Mother Anne of St. Bartholomew 
after Holy Communion, recommended the new house 
to our Lord, supplicating Him to communicate His 
grace not only to herself and the other nuns now 
kneeling in His presence, but to all who would 
henceforth come to dwell in that monastery. “ The 
adorable Master,” says she, “ assured me that He 
would grant my request. From that moment to the 
present,” she adds, “1 have felt the effects of that 
grace in my own soul and that of my Sisters.” f 

The city of Tours, at this time, contained a large 
number of heretics, descendents of the Huguenots, 
who, in the preceding century, had plunged the 
country into those frightful civil wars, so famous 
in our history. 

When they heard that nuns were coming to dwell 
in their midst, and saw them in a boat, crossing the 
Loire, they exclaimed : “ Oh, if it would never 
reach the shore, but take them all to the bottom of 
the river ! ” Their impious wishes, however, were not 

* Extract from the Annals in MS. p. 6. 

f Vie de Ici Ven. Mère Anne de Saint-Barthôlomie t by R. F. 
Marcel Bouix, ch. XYI. Edition of 1872. 


CARMEL OF TOURS. 


57 


fulfilled .; and more than this, grace soon triumphed 
over their animosity. A next door neighbor of the 
Carmelites, having wished to summon them before 
a magistrate on account of some difficulty about a 
strayed chicken, was struck with admiration at their 
great charity, and in a short time abjured heresy. 
This event created a great sensation among the sec¬ 
tarians, and heaping invectives upon the nuns, they 
said : “ These Teresians can make Catholics of us 
all in spite of ourselves !” . . . They would have 
dreaded the Teresians even more, had they known 
the many prayers and penances offered, amidst the 
solitude of the cloister, for their conversion. 

Already had the new monastery diffused abroad 
such an odor of sanctity, that great numbers of per¬ 
sons of the highest rank came from afar, to solicit 
the favor of receiving therein the holy habit of Car¬ 
mel. At one time, in the beginning, the number 
of postulants amounted to twenty.* Among those* 
whom the Venerable Mother Anne of St. Bar¬ 
tholomew admitted to profession, we find, with 
pleasure, the name of Mlle, de Querlingue, the 
daughter of a nobleman of Brittany, in religion, Sr. 
Marie of St. Elias ; also, a Mlle, de la Rivière of 
Rennes, in religion, Sr. Jeanne of >St. Joseph, who 
afterwards went to the convent at Morlaix, f These 
were as the blossoms of a still more precious fruit 
Catholic Brittany was one day to yield. 

The bright example of these first professed nuns 
at this convent was reflected in the religious, trained 
by their hands. We find abundant proof of this in 

* Annals, p. 8. 

f Ibid, p. 9. 


58 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


the fact that four among these foundation stones of 
Carmel of Tours, were chosen to assist in extending 
the Reform of St. Teresa, so capable were they 
judged of implanting the true spirit of the Order. 
Many others were also, in the course of time, selected 
from this house for the same purpose. 

Mother Anne of St. Bartholmew received there 
signal favors from God, which she mentions in the 
following terms: “ The Divine Majesty bestowed 
upon me many graces, at a time when I was deprived 
of the opportunity of making my confession as I 
could wish, for the confessor of the convent did not 
understand Spanish, nor I French. However, I 
made my confession as best I could, and our 
Superiors came to visit us every year. Our Lord 
supplied this deficiency by abundant consolations, 
granting me a return of the graces He had with¬ 
drawn,—graees which strengthened me for several 
•days, and greatly facilitated the exercise of penance 
and virtue. It seemed to me that trials had increased 
my strength, and unconsciously, I would become 
recollected in God, and clothed, as it were, with the 
spirit of St. Paul, causing me to exclaim with him : 

‘ Who shall separate me from the charity of Jesus 
Christ V I was as though inebriated with love of 
my Saviour, and had he not sustained me by His 
power, and fortified my weakness under the excess 
of these celestial favors, I could not have borne 
them. With the great Apostle could I say : ‘ I 
would wish to be anathema, and die for my brethren, 
and my Lord Jesus Christ/ And, as on such occa¬ 
sions, the soul abandons itself to these transports of 
divine love, oui* Lord once said to me, 1 It is the 


CARMEL OF TOURS. 


59 


glory of the just to do My will/ and He added 
some words of tenderness, which kindled such flames 
of fervor in my heart, that I remained as though 
out of myself.” 

In all the trials attendant upon this Foundation, 
she had recourse to St. Teresa, who several times 
appeared to her. In order to keep this holy friend 
ever in mind, she always carried about a small pic¬ 
ture of her; and this picture she could fasten on the 
hard wall with no more difficulty than if she were 
tacking it upon tapestry. On leaving the convent 
of Tours, Mother Anne of St. Bartholomew left 
there, as the Prophet Elias to his disciple Eliseus, 
her mantle, and doubtless, also, a participation of her 
spirit ; for the nuns of this convent have been dis¬ 
tinguished by very great and rare virtues, especially 
inviolable fidelity to obedience, and the care with 
which they have preserved, in all its pristine vigor, 
the true spirit of their Holy Mother Teresa of 
Jesus. Often the Superiors made use of them in the 
Foundation and guidance of other houses of the 
Order, where they rendered important services, and 
attracted many blessings. We mention -especially 
Mlle, de Quartrebarbes, in religion, Mother Elizabeth 
of the Trinity, who died in the odor of sanctity, 
Prioress of the Carmel of Beaune.* Others in 1617, 
founded the Convent of Riom, in Auvergne; of 
Nantes, in 1618; of Sens, in 1625; and of Angers, 
in 1626. 

The Church of the monastery was built in 1616. 
The first stone was laid on Tuesday in Holy Week, 

* Mgr. Colet, Archbishop of Tours, wrote her most interesting 
and edifying life, when he was V. G. of Dijon. (1861.) 


60 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


March 29, by Queen Marie de Medicis, who was 
passing through Tours on her return from the south, 
after the marriage of her son, King Louis XIII, 
with Anne of Austria. Under the Priorship of 
Mother Marguerite of the Blessed Sacrament, 
daughter of Blessed Mary of the Incarnation, the 
edifice was consecrated on Friday, May 3, 1619, 
and placed under the patronage of the Maternity of 
the most Blessed Virgin, that glorious and touching 
privilege, which, at a future day, was to hold so 
important a place in the revelations of Sister Marie 
de Saint-Pierre. After this solemn consecration, the 
convent changed its title from that of Our Lady of 
the Angels, which it had heretofore borne, to that 
of the Incarnation or the Maternity of the holy 
Mother of God. By both these titles is it desig¬ 
nated in the ancient documents,* and also at present. 

It is related, that at the time St. Philip of Xeri 
was canonized, a holy ecclesiastic, Bev. F. Odin, 
well known in the Order, came to Tours. The 
Mother Prioress asked him to celebrate Mass to 
obtain, though St. Philip’s intercession, the cure of 
two sick religious. On leaving the altar the good 
priest said to her : “ Mother, one of your Sisters is 
cured,” which was found to be so. He added : 
“ The souls of your Community are very pleasing to 
God, for when I gave Holy Communion, our Lord 
was so eager to be united to them, that the Sacred 
Hosts flew from between my fingers to enter their 
mouths.” The Carmelites of Tours have always 
had a great devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. 


* Annals, p. 14. 


CARMEL OF TOURS. 


61 


Our Lord, one day, appeared to the Prioress during 
Prayer, and showed her His adorable Heart, enclosed 
wherein she beheld the hearts of all the religious of 
the community. 

When Jansenism desolated France by seeking to 
wipe out the spirit of Christianity, and lead faithful 
souls astray, Carmel of Tours preserved intact the 
purity of its Faith, and yielded unhesitating sub¬ 
mission to all the decisions of the Holy See. Several 
times, the Superiors even selected subjects from this 
house, to defend or re-establish sound doctrine in the 
monasteries which had allowed themselves to be 
carried away by the torrent of heresy. The attach¬ 
ment of the Mother Prioresses to Catholic teachings 
is manifested in all their writings of that period, and 
the Circulars addressed to the Order, invariably end 
thus: “We are all true daughters of the Church, 
and, by the grace of God, submissive to Her 
decisions.” * 

When the Revolution of 1789 burst forth, the 
professed religious at this house were nineteen in 
number. Not one showed herself unworthy of her 
high vocation. One day several municipal officers 
presented themselves at the parlor grating, and, forc¬ 
ing the enclosure, wished to enter the interior to 
propose what they called, “ The Oath of Liberty.” 
The Sisters, without exception, most positively 
refused to take it, declaring that having made their 
vows to God, they could not be released from them 
by man, and that, moreover, they knew of no liberty 
sweeter or more glorious than the practice of their 

* Annals, p. 18. 

6 


62 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


monastic duties I The officers returned a few days 
later, and imagining that obedience to the Superioress 
was the cause of such determined resistance to their 
proposed emancipation, they took measures for the 
election of another Prioress, presiding over it them¬ 
selves, and exacting a vote frQm every nun, even 
those wearing the white veil. Judge of their aston¬ 
ishment at finding that the same Superioress had 
been unanimously re-elected ! “We are foiled,” they 
exclaimed. This means not succeeding, they spoke 
privately to each nun, and made every effort to cause 
dissension in the Community and destroy its peace ; 
but all in vain, these courageous Sisters were thus 
but the more strongly united by the bonds of faith 
and charity.* 

Ere long they were driven from their convent, 
and obliged to seek shelter in the homes of their 
friends, who gave it iji fear and trembling. Soon 
they (the nuns) were arrested and taken to prison. 
It would be impossible to relate here all they had 
to suffer during that cruel captivity. 

One of the nuns, eighty-seven years of age, and 
blind, who had to be carried in the arms of her 
Sisters, was left for four hours in a courtyard, ex¬ 
posed to all the rigor of the weather. This expos¬ 
ure brought on inflammation of the lungs, of which 
she died in eight days, bereft of all material succor, 
but happy in the thought, that she was giving her 
life for the love of her Heavenly Spouse: The rest 
were several times transferred from one to another 
of the different prisons in the city. One day, they 


* Annals, p. 5L 


CARMEL OF TOURS. 


63 


were notified that they were to be taken out; and 
immediately, thoughts of the scaffold filled them 
with joy, for death had long been the object of their 
desires. Only when on the road did they recognize 
that the order signified a change of prison. The 
populace had been incited to treat them most con¬ 
temptuously, and to load them with injurious epithets 
during this transfer, and one of them, at her last hour, 
lamenting that day exclaimed : “ Alas ! must I die 
upon a bed, after having almost obtained the crown 
of martyrdom ! ” 

No words could describe the treatment they had 
to endure during the eighteen months of their in¬ 
carceration. Often the floor was their only couch, 
and their fare, the coarsest and most meagre, whilst 
fidelity to the abstinence prescribed by their Rule, 
completed the measure of their sufferings. At last, 
the prison doors were opened, and, one by one, they 
withdrew to the abodes of devoted friends, thus to 
await the hour of their reunion in Community. 

However, they lived with all possible regularity 
under the most exact obedience, religiously devoted 
and united to their Prioress, who even under such 
untoward circumstances, exercised among them the 
functions of her office until they were reinstated in 
their convent. Every Saturday she sent to each 
house what was needed for the week ; on Sunday, 
the Sisters met together for their religious exercises ; 
Chapter was held, and they asked their permissions 
as though within the precincts of the cloister; they 
had no individual possessions, and the vow of 
poverty was observed as in Community life. But 
from the year 1798, after the storm, they were able 


64 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


to resume their former conventual life, and when 
they re-entered their convent, it was a source of 
sweet satisfaction to them never to have broken, 
even in prison, the chain of their holy observances. 
Their first dwelling was an incommodious one, 
where they had no other support but that afforded 
by the labor of their hands. Providence came to 
their assistance, and a benefactress furnished them 
the means of purchasing an old convent, of which 
they took possession in 1805.* 

They now clothed themselves anew with the holy 
livery of Carmel, although, not yet able to observe 
strict enclosure. It was only in 1822, when they 
returned to their original convent that God granted 
them this consolation. This monastery was dear to 
them by many titles ; a part of the cloister had been 
destroyed, but there still remained a-remnant of that 
abode which had been blessed by the sojourn of the 
Venerable Mother Anne of St. Bartholomew, and 
her first daughters. The cell where St. Teresa had 
so often appeared to her was still there. The de¬ 
spoiled Church had been used as a storehouse for 
six years ; yet the main altar was still in existence, 
as well as the painting representing the Mystery of 
the Incarnation, under the patronage of which Car¬ 
mel of Tours is placed. That the Blessed Virgin 
seems to have watched over this edifice dedicated to 
her, we may judge from the following sketch, 
quoted literally from the convent Annals : 

*The old house of the Refuge, situated in the vicinity of 
Notre Dame de la Riche, and which was afterwards appropri¬ 
ated to the object for which it had been first intended. 


CARMEL OF TOURS. 


65 


“ The purchaser of our house and grounds was 
urged to sell the church to be used as a theatre, its 
situation being very favorable for that purpose. 
The eve of the sale, one of the clerks went there on 
business. Imagine his astonishment at beholding 
two little streams of water flowing from the picture ! 
He approaches, and perceives that they are trickling 
from the Blessed Virgin’s eyes ! Surprised beyond 
measure, he makes an examination to discover some 
natural cause, but in vain,—the picture was sus¬ 
pended at a height of more than thirty feet from the 
ground, and resting against a wall three feet thick, 
where no one had ever noticed the least dampness. 
Profoundly impressed by what he had just witnessed, 
this mau, who was not at all religious, hastened in a 
state of great excitement to the proprietor, and said 
to him with much emotion : “ If you sell the church 
to be used as a theatre, you are lost, you and all 
your family ! I have just now beheld the Blessed 
Virgin in tears !” It is not known whether the 
owner really credited this marvel or not, but, at 
all events, he broke the bargain. The astounded 
clerk now hastened to the humble retreat of our 
Mothers, and related the event to them, several 
of whom went to the church and witnessed it them¬ 
selves.” 

This miraculous picture is the one still seen above 
the main altar in the monastery chapel, which also 
possesses another very curious picture, likewise 
worthy of veneration. It represents the Face of 
our Lord. The original, said to be preserved at 
Genoa, is, according to a pious tradition, the true 
picture of Jesus Christ, which He Himself sent to 
6 * 


66 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


King Abgarus.* A certain number of copies were 
made and taken to Spain, whence one of them was 
brought to France by M. Gauthier, a gentlemen of 
Anjou, who accompanied Cardinal de Berulle to 
Spain, when he went thither to solicit nuns for the 
first Foundation of the Order in France. M. Gau¬ 
thier kept the picture a long time, but at last parted 
with it, and to-day it is found in the possession of 
Carmel of Tours. It is the Face of the Saviour, life 
size, painted on wood,—a portrait of ravishing 
beauty; there is so much delicacy of touch in the 
finely cut features, such life-like hue in the coloring, 
that one cannot look upon it without admiration 
and love. 

It is, perhaps, somewhat remarkable that our 
Lord should have chosen the only Carmel in the 
world possessing such a treasure, to manifest therein 
the mystery of His sorrowful Face, making the spot 
the cradle of that reparative homage, so justly His 
due. The Carmelites of Tours have also several 
other objects which they esteem of inestimable value. 

Their charity to a Spanish Canon exiled to France 
in 1824, was rewarded by their receiving in return a 


*St. John Damascene narrates the fact in these words : (De 
orth. fide, lib. iv., cap. xvii.—Orat. de virginibus). Abgarus, 
King of Edessa in Syria, sent a painter to Jesus Christ to take 
his portrait, but the painter not being able to do so, on account 
of the great radiance emanating from this august Visage, our 
Lord lay a linen upon His divine Face, apd all the features of 
his countenance became imprinted thereon. This He sent to 
Abgarus to satisfy this prince’s pious curiosity. Fleury, in his 
Histoire Ecclesiastique, b. xii., p. 49, notices this fact at some 
length ; he cites all the authors who make mention of it, and 
appears not to doubt it himself. 


CARMEL OF TOURS. 


67 


precious relic of St. Teresa,—a large fragment of the 
bone of her right wrist, with the document attesting 
its authenticity, signed by the Archbishop of 
Grenada, and the Discalced Carmelite Fathers, dig¬ 
nitaries of the Province of St. Angelo, in Upper 
Andalusia. This priceless gift was carried to the 
frontiers of Spain by a royal courier, and addressed 
to the Archbishop of Tours, by him to be given the 
Carmelite Convent. Another treasure is the mantle 
left there, as we have already mentioned, by the 
Venerable Mother Anne of St. Bartholomew. They 
preserve also the coverlet used by the Venerable 
Mother Madeleine of St. Joseph, the noble daughter 
of the founder of the convent of whom mention has 
been made, and it is on this blanket the Sisters 
prostrate themselves on the day of their profes¬ 
sion. They have likewise the happiness of pos¬ 
sessing a small piece of the veil of the Most Blessed 
Virgin, sent to them in 1835 by the Carmelites of 
Chartres. 

At the time of Sister Saint-Pierre’s reception 
into the Order, only seventeen years had elapsed 
since the Carmelites had re-entered their monastery 
after their expulsion during the Revolution. They 
guarded faithfully the precious memory of the 
heroic virtues and bright example of their glorious 
predecessors who had dwelt in this house. A few of 
the former Mothers were still living, and assisted in 
maintaining the true and ancient spirit of Carmel, 
the observance of the Rule in all its vigor. More¬ 
over, the Prioress, Mother Marie of the Incarnation 
(of whom we shall soon speak), was a holy and highly 
favored soul, who communicated to the whole Com- 


68 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


munity a spiritual impulse as energetic, as it was 
salutary and fruitful. 

It was under the direction of this worthy Mother 
that our new comer found herself on entering the 
monastery. At such a school, we shall see the 
young postulant, already so well prepared in the 
world by her prudent and learned confessor, ascend 
with unwonted rapidity to the highest summits of 
religious perfection. 

Let us hasten to resume the perusal of her own 
ingenuous narrations, wherein she tells us of her 
first essay in the life of the cloister. 


CHAPTER Y. 


THE NOVITIATE. 

“ I looked upon myself as the servant of the Holy Family, and 
offered myself to them in that capacity.” ( The Sister’s Words.) 

The distinctive characteristic of life in Carmel, 
according to St. Teresa, is zeal to promote God’s 
glory, and to serve the Church through penance 
and prayer. “My daughters,” said the illustrious 
Reformatrix to her nuns repeatedly, “you are not 
here for rest and enjoyment, but to labor, to suffer, 
and to save souls ! ” 

From the moment of her arrival, Perrine felt that 
she ought to be penetrated with this spirit. 

“ The God of mercy,” says she, “ soon manifested 
Himself to my soul, and made known to me for 
what designs I had been called, designs truly calcu¬ 
lated to give me a high idea of the sublime vocation 
I proposed to embrace. Heretofore the end of all 
the communications with which our Lord favored 
me had been the sanctification of my own soul. I 
worked solely for myself, having no other care save 
my perfection. But, in calling me to Carmel, devoted 
to the glory of God, the needs of the Church, and 
the welfare of souls, He wished to imbue me with 
the characteristics of the Order—the spirit of fervor, 

69 


70 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


self-sacrifice and zeal for the salvation of souls—sub¬ 
lime and disinterested virtues, which, as yet, I knew 
not ! The following is what was communicated to 
me on this subject. I have always looked upon this 
first call as the foundation and basis of the Repara¬ 
tion ; for, before our Lord spoke clearly to me of the 
Work, He waited, as it were, until my Superiors 
permitted the perfect abandonment of myself into 
His hands, as He requested in that communication, 
the remembrance whereof is impressed upon my 
soul, although not having kept any written memo¬ 
randum of it I can give only the substance : 

“One day, after I had received Holy Com¬ 
munion, our Lord deigned to manifest Himself to 
my soul. He was accompanied by an angel. Show¬ 
ing me the multitudes of souls who were falling into 
hell, He expressed the desire that I should offer 
myself entirely to His good pleasure ; also, that I 
should resign to Him all the merits I might acquire 
in my new career, and this for the furtherance of His 
designs. He assured me that He would take care of 
my interests, He would make me a partaker of His 
own merits, and Himself be the guide of my soul. 
The angel (elsewhere she assures us it was the Arch¬ 
angel Raphael) urged me to consent to so magnifi¬ 
cent a proposal ; and he seemed to be envious of my 
happiness, because, not having a body, he could not, 
like myself, suffer and merit. He told me that 
if I granted our Lord’s desires, the angels would 
surround my death-bed, and defend me from the 
snares of the demons, I was anxious to make this 
sacrifice of myself; but, either from the Divine 
Master’s own advice, or through fear of swerving 


THE NOVITIATE. 


71 


from holy obedience, I did not immediately do so, 
thinking I must first have our Reverend Mother’s 
permission. Therefore, I wrote out this communi¬ 
cation and handed it to her, as I had been accus¬ 
tomed to do in the world with my confessor. Our 
good Mother, who as yet knew not in what manner 
our Lord led me, paid slight heed to her little postu¬ 
lant’s words, and said to me in her wisdom : ‘ My 
child, the act of sacrifice you ask permission to make, 
is not an ordinary one, and this is why, not yet 
having any right over you, I cannot counsel, and, 
still less, permit it. ’ 

“ As I had the highest esteem for obedience, I 
respectfully submitted to our prudent Mother’s 
wishes, which however did not prevent my being 
extremely sorry at the refusal. I returned to our 
Lord and said to Him : ‘ Behold ! my good Saviour, 
it is obedience only that hinders my doing what Thou 
dost ask, but Thou seest the depths of my heart, and 
Thou knowest that I give Thee all I can ! ’ Our 
Lord, for the time, accepted my good will ; neverthe¬ 
less, He several times afterwards urged me to repeat 
the request to my Superiors ; and it was only when I 
had obtained their consent, that He fully revealed to 
me the Work of the Reparation. Our wise Mother, 
seeing that one of her daughters was thus receiving 
favors of a supernatural character, wishing doubtless 
to be assured of the spirit whence they proceeded, 
forbade me to think any more about them. Then, 
I seldom heard these interior words, and our Lord 
Himself, in a measure, submitted with me to holy 
obedience.’ ” * 

* Document A, p. 44. Manuscript Life, p. 49, 


72 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


That Superioress in obedience to whom our Lord 
submits, because He has constituted her His visible 
representative over a chosen soul, whom He has 
selected to be an instrument of mercy, is Mother 
Marie of the Incarnation, of whom we have already 
spoken. As she holds a prominent place in the 
communications made to Sister Saint-Pierre, it is 
necessary now that we make our readers acquainted 
with her. 

The venerated Mother Marie of the Incarnation 
was also from Brittany. She was born at Paim- 
boeuf, under the Directory, on the 19th of January, 
1795. When presented to the municipal authori¬ 
ties according to law, to be inscribed on the civil 
register, her name was given as Marie Angélique, 
that of her mother. This being one odious to their 
impiety, for the authorities were all revolutionists, 
they added another of their own choosing, La Vertu 
(Virtue). Providence seems thus to have made use 
of the mouth of the wicked to characterize the child 
from her entrance into tbe world, for she fully jus¬ 
tified this beautiful appellation by the innocence of 
her life, and the strength of her character. On 
account of the persecution, she at first received only 
private Baptism, but at a later period the ceremonies 
belonging to the rite were performed. At a very 
tender age she so fully appreciated the grace oi 
regeneration, that on hearing persons speak of infi¬ 
del countries, she would say to herself : “ Oh ! how 
I pity the little girls there, who cannot like me, 
have the happiness of receiving Baptism.” Angéli¬ 
que learned to suffer very young ; for her family in 
these unhappy times, were overwhelmed with trials, 


THE NOVITIATE. 


73 


of every nature, and the mother when congratulated 
upon having a child whose wisdom was so superior 
to its age, would answer: “Ah! she has often seen 
me weep ! ” After the Revolution, this lady, now 
a widow, fixed her home at Tours* The daugh¬ 
ter, from her tenderest years, seemed to understand 
the happiness of knowing and loving God. She 
had as it were, a natural distaste for the pleasures 
of the world, and all her aspirations were heaven¬ 
ward; nor did God delay manifesting to her His 
designs upon her soul. At the age of thirteen or 
fourteen, passing one day before the despoiled 
church of the Carmelites, she felt herself urged to 
enter. Kneeling on the steps leading from the nave 
to the sanctuary, she fixes her gaze upon the picture 
of the Blessed Virgin which still remained sus¬ 
pended at a great height upon the wall ; then atten¬ 
tively considering the spot where the gratings had 
once separated the religious from the body of the 
church, she said to herself : “ How happy I would 
be, could I one day, live with those who dwelt 
behind this grating ! ” Immediately she heard the 
answer : “ Persevere and you will.” At the same 
time, a crushing weight seemed to press upon her 
soul, a presentiment of coming sorrow seizes her, 
and she falls prostrate on the stone steps, which are 
wet with the tears streaming from her eyes. The 
echo of the deserted chapel repeats her sobs. 
Frightened at this unexpected sound, the poor 
little one flies, and hastens to relieve her heart, 
by relating to a venerable friend what has just 
taken place. “My child,” said the latter in a 
7 


74 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


very impressive manner, “ you will be a nun, I 
have always foreseen it.” * 

The world could not long restrain this innocent 
dove, who took flight towards the cloister at the age 
of seventeen years and a half. 

After the revolutionary storm, the Carmelites, 
as we have said, found a temporary home in an 
old convent which they purchased; and it was 
here that Marie Angélique, saying farewell to a 
tender and beloved mother, presented herself to share 
the poverty of St. Teresa’s daughters. The Com¬ 
munity recognized in her the treasure it had acquired, 
and care was taken to enhance its value by making 
her pass through trials of the most rigid obedience, 
that thus all self-will might be extinguished. How 
beneficial this proved, may be known by the fact 
that, whilst yet young, she was chosen as Mistress of 
Novices, to form other soxds to the religious life. 
The sacrifices and privations these years of distress 
imposed upon the Community, forever impaired her 
health, and brought on the painful maladies, which 
ended only in death. 

Nothing, however, could make her swerve from 
her habits of work and prayer. Having become 
treasurer, she managed the slender finances of the 
house so prudently and successfully that the Com¬ 
munity was at length extricated from the pecuniary 
embarrassment under which it had struggled since 
the Revolution. Elected Prioress in 1834, she made 
important improvements in the ancient convent, 

* These details and the following, are taken from the Circular 
relative to Mother Marie of the Incarnation, (March 25th, 
1865). 


THE NOVITIATE. 


75 


which, in 1822, had again become the property of 
Carmel. This was the spot where she had received 
the first call of grace. When threats of municipal 
expulsion constrained them to quit this venerated 
asylum, the building of the new monastery devolved 
upon her, and she succeeded marvelously, aided in an 
especial manner by St. Teresa, whom her faith and 
filial confidence knew how to enlist in this difficult 
undertaking. Her charity was inexhaustible, extend¬ 
ing to all the spiritual and temporal needs, which, in 
her seclusion, Divine Providence allowed to fall 
under her notice. It is thus she contributed to the 
re-establishment of the. Carmelite Fathers in France, 
by the care she took of two Spanish religious who 
had been brought prisoners to' Tours. She obtained 
their liberation, and had their wants supplied until 
such time as they could rejoin the Reverend Father 
Dominic, O. D. C., and other exiled fathers who were 
to found a new Carmel. A woman of superior intel¬ 
lect, she often elicited the admiration of persons in 
the world who had dealings with her. “ What a 
pity,” they would say, “ that so remarkable a person 
should be immured in a cloister ! ” . . . 

The Venerable Mothers by whom she had been 
received, considering her the link destined to connect 
the present age with the past, had, as she often said, 
using their own expression, made her, “ on the peril 
of her soul,” the legatee of the traditions of the 
Order. She accepted them on these terms, and in 
order to insure the preservation of them, she gath¬ 
ered at Tours, and from the other houses, the Rules, 
religious prescripts and all the monastic customs, 
compiling thus The Treasure of Carmel, a most val- 


76 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


uable work in this connection, and eminently fitted 
to preserve the- traditions of the Carmelites in 
France.* 

In her administration, Mother Marie of the In¬ 
carnation understood admirably how to blend firm¬ 
ness with mildness. No matter what it cost her, 
she never hesitated, when conscience and the occa¬ 
sion required, to reprove, and even severely if neces¬ 
sary. Her lively faith and matured judgment, con¬ 
stantly called to their aid the rules of Christian pru¬ 
dence, as well as those of the most scrupulous dis¬ 
cretion. One of her gifts was the discernment of 
spirits ; and to test whether they came from God or 
our nature, she made use of an infallible rule,—obe¬ 
dience. This was to* her the touch-stone of true 
virtue. She well knew how to supplement this 
when necessary, with an apparent indifference to the 
communications brought her, and some occasion of 
humbling the individual. 

Such was the course, this prudent Mother fol¬ 
lowed, in regard to the young Bretonne whom 
Providence had placed in her hands. The better to 
understand the spirit by which this postulant was 
led, Mother Marie continued the method adopted 
by the director at Bennes ; that of having her give 
in writing, the account of these heavenly communi¬ 
cations. When her spiritual daughter presented 
this paper, the Mother would take it without say¬ 
ing a word and put it aside, meanwhile, continuing 
her present employment, as if to intimate, that like 

* A second edition of this work was issued by Carmel of Tours, 
in 1879, bearing the “Imprimatur” of His Grace, Mgr. Colet, 
Archbishop of Tours. 


THE NOVITIATE. 


77 


everything else, this communication would receive 
her attention in due time, after the rest, and at the 
moment she deemed fitting. 

The first interior attraction the new postulant felt 
was a tender devotion to the Holy Infancy of Jesus. 
Let us listen to her own words on this subject, how 
grace moved her thereto, even before receiving the 
holy habit : 

“As I was being formed to the religious life 
of Carmel, and was then but a little child, our 
Lord attracted me in a very especial manner to 
His holy Infancy, making known to me, that He 
desired me to have great devotion to Him in that 
state. In my mind I traced out an exercise for 
every day of the month, which I practiced with 
great consolation, and I also think with much 
profit to my soul. I looked upon myself as the little 
handmaid of the Holy Family, and I offered my¬ 
self to Them in that capacity. I ardently desired to 
wear Their livery in taking the holy habit of Car¬ 
mel, and I prayed our Reverend Mother to grant 
this boon, notwithstanding my unworthiness. This 
favor was conferred upon me on the 21st of May, 
1840, in that blessed month consecrated to her from 
whom I had received the gift of so beautiful a voca¬ 
tion. On that day replete with joy and blessings, I 
consecrated myself entirely to the Holy Family. 
Here is the act of Consecration I wrote, and placed 
over my heart during the ceremony. 

“ ‘ O Jesus, Mary and Joseph ! most holy and 
illustrious Family, vouchsafe this day, notwith¬ 
standing my unworthiness, to receive me as Thy 
servant. This is the great desire of my heart, oh ! 

• 7 * 


78 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


deign to grant it! I am fully resolved to be ever 
faithful to Thee, and since I cannot as yet bind my¬ 
self to Thy service by the three Vows of religion, 
at least, accept my desire, and give me the grace to 
observe them as perfectly as though I were living 
under them. O most holy Infant Jesus, make me 
as submissive to the Holy Ghost and to my Supe¬ 
riors, as Thou wert to the Most Blessed Virgin and 
St. Joseph. And thou, O Mary conceived without 
sin, so pure in the eyes of God, obtain for me the 
grace of never doing aught which might tarnish the 
brightness of that beautiful virtue of purity. O 
blessed patriarch St. Joseph, who hast practiced 
holy poverty in so eminent a degree, and who hast 
sacrificed thyself for the holy Infant Jesus and 
Mary His divine Mother, obtain by thy powerful 
intercession with God, that following thy example, 
I may love and practice holy poverty, until the last 
moment of my life, and that it may be my sweet 
duty to sacrifice myself for my Sisters. Lastly, O 
Holy Family, grant that I honor myself as Thy 
most humble servant. Deign to receive me on this 
happy day, and as a proof that Thou dost accept my 
services, accord me the grace of worthily acquitting 
myself at the Divine Office, that I may recite it 
with all possible attention, respect, love, fervor and 
devotion, being as wakeful at Matins, as if I were 
in Heaven, dazzled by the beauty of God, and the 
splendors of His glory ! Amen/ 

“ Ever after that Consecration, I considered my¬ 
self the little servant of the Holy Family, and all 
my actions were offered with the intention of serv¬ 
ing Them in spirit at Nazareth. But I liaçl still 


THE NOVITIATE. 


79 


another ambition ; it was to be the little ass of the 
holy Infant Jesus. If the Prophet King could 
regard himself before God as a beast of burden, 
with how much more reason, might not I ! Reflect¬ 
ing that the Son of God had condescended to become 
so poor for love of us, that when about to make His 
triumphant entry into Jerusalem, He was obliged to 
send His disciples to borrow this humble creature, 
the ass, and say for Him, that ‘the Master was in 
need of it/ I said to Him : ‘ My Saviour ! now that 
Thou art in Heaven, I want Thee to have on earth, 
an ass which will be always at Thy service and 
entirely Thine, one that Thou canst lead wherever 
Thou wilt. I beg Thee to accept me as this beast! 
As well as I can remember, I was anxious to know 
if our Lord accepted my offering, and I think I 
prayed to the Holy Family for that intention. 
Then I proceeded as follows to establish my claim 
as this ass, and the recognition of it by others. Our 
Reverend Mothers were then making their annual 
retreat, and during that time, the postulants and 
novices, took their recreation in the Novitiate. One 
evening during recreation, when we were all col¬ 
lected before the picture of the Holy Family, I pro¬ 
posed to my companions to make a little Bethlehem 
for this Holy Family, each of us being especially 
consecrated to it, to serve it in the capacity of that 
beast of burden which should fall to her lot; for 
instance, one would represent the ass, another the 
ox, another the mule. The proposal was unani¬ 
mously accepted. 

u The lots were drawn, and to my great satisfac¬ 
tion, I was chosen by Providence to represent the 


80 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


ass of the Infant Jesus. I now made some inqui¬ 
ries concerning the nature of these animals, in 
order to avoid their defects. A postulant who had 
owned one in the world, gave me, on this subject, 
all necessary information. We could not have had 
a gayer and more innocent distraction. The tickets 
were written and distributed ; mine read thus : “The 
ass of the Infant Jesus is stubborn and lazy, he likes 
to walk only in narrow paths ; but he has resolved 
to correct himself; his office shall be to impart 
warmth to the Infant Jesus, and to bear Him on His 
journeys,—in a word, to render to the Holy Family 
all the services he can.” I was delighted with my 
new title, but I felt that it needed our Reverend 
Mother’s approbation to ensure its authenticity, as 
it were, and I begged her to sign my ticket ; for I 
said to myself, ‘ Our Mother represents our Lord ; 
if I can obtain her signature, I will regard it as an 
indubitable proof that He likewise endorses it/ 
Our tickets amused our good, Reverend Mother, but 
‘ she was not much inclined/ she said, ‘ to add her 
signature/ However, she yielded, and becoming a 
child with her children, practicing what St. Paul so 
earnestly recommends, that of being ‘ all things to 
all men, so as to save all/ we thus obtained the ini¬ 
tials of her name. I had a serious intention in this 
offering of myself to the Infant Jesus, for I thought 
it would serve somewhat as a little contract by 
which I could answer the call, the Lord had made 
me a few days after my entrance into the convent, 
that of giving myself and my slight merits entirely 
to Him, for the accomplishment of His ends. I 
had always felt eager to offer Him that sacrifice; 


THE NOVITIATE. 


. 81 

the permission only was wanting. Seeing that our 
Reverend Mother had signed my ticket, I hoped at 
last, that I could make my little act of sacrifice to 
the Holy Child. However, to be assured of it, I 
epoke to our good Mother, and asked her if she was 
willing to give her ass to the holy Infant Jesus to 
do with it as He willed. i No/ she answered, ‘ tell 
Him I only lend it; as yet I do not give it entirely/ 
“I was to meet with this refusal more than once; 
a perfect act of abandonment into the hands of God 
for the accomplishment of His designs, might have 
resulted in consequences, which my ignorance in the 
ways of God prevented me from perceiving. Our 
wise and prudent Mother wished to render this poor 
and miserable instrument more yielding and man¬ 
ageable, by making it submit to the practices of 
obedience and the renunciation of its own will. I, 
therefore, presented myself to our Lord, through the 
hands of Mary and Joseph, as a loaned ass. I 
believe this little act of simplicity was agreeable to 
that Divine Child, for He began to wield over me 
a new power, and to direct me in His ways. This 
was the fulfilment of a promise He had made me 
at the time of my entrance into Carmel. I looked 
upon my soul as the poor stable of Bethlehem, and 
contemplating the holy Infant Jesus in my heart, I 
adored Him in union with the Blessed Virgin and 
St. Joseph, offering myself to Him to be His little 
servant. Thus, I was His ass in prayer, strug¬ 
gling to warm Him by my love; and His little 
servant in my actions, by imagining myself in the 
house of Nazareth, and performing as if for the 
Holy Family, all the active duties of my state of 


82 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


life. The Infant Jesus inspired me to honor Him 
every day of the month, by a series of exercises 
clearly traced out in my mind.” * 

We give below the outlines of these devotions : 

MONTH OF THE HOLY INFANT JESUS. 

On the 15th of the month, the Sister celebrated 
the Espousals of the Blessed Virgin with St. Joseph, 
promising to work for them as their little servant. 

The 16th was consecrated to the Mystery of the 
Incarnation. The nine following days, she honored 
the Infant Jesus in Mary’s holy womb, and accom¬ 
panied the Blessed Virgin and St. Joseph in their 
journey to Bethlehem. 

On the 25th, she celebrated the Birth of the 
Infant Jesus. 

She adored Him on the 26th with the shepherds. 

On the 27th, in His Circumcision, when He was 
named Jesus. 

On the 28th, with the three Kings. 

On the 29th, in His Presentation in the Temple. 

On the 30th, in His Flight into Egypt 

The first seven days of the following month were 
consecrated to the Infant Jesus in His place of 
exile ; she honored there His first steps, His words. 
His actions, His purity and simplicity. 

On the 8th, she celebrated the return of the Holy 
Family to Nazareth. 

On the 9th, she contemplated Jesus beginning to 
work with St. Joseph. 


* Document A, p. 46. 


THE NOVITIATE. 


83 


On the 10th, she honored the obedience of the 
Infant Jesus to His parents. 

On the 11th, the filial attentions He showed His 
holy Mother and the faithful Guardian of His 
Infancy. 

The 12th was consecrated to the journey of the 
Infant Jesus, when at the age of twelve years, He 
went with Mary and Joseph to Jerusalem to cele¬ 
brate the Pasch—and also, to the three days’ loss of 
the Child Jesus. 

On the 13th, she adored Him amidst the Doctors 
of the Law, maintaining His Father’s cause. 

And on the 14th, she rendered homage to the 
Child found in the Temple by Mary and Joseph, 
and His returning in their company to Nazareth, 
where He was submissive to them. 

Thus ended the month of the holy Infant Jesus, 
and on the morrow which was the 15th, she began 
anew. Every day spent in this manner seemed to 
her a feast-day. The presence of the Infant Jesus, 
in union with whom she performed all her actions, 
rendered them easy and agreeable. 

“But,” says she, “Satan who is so proud , was 
jealous to see me thus ever busy in honoring the 
humiliations of the Incarnate Word; and after the 
performance of an act one day, which no doubt was 
extremely displeasing to this Fallen Angel, he tried 
to revenge himself on me. That night, when in 
bed, and just falling asleep, I suddenly felt upon 
my head, a large beast, which seemed trying to 
smother me; and immediately, I had an interior 
admonition that this was the demon. I felt his 
claws sinking into my head. At once, with all my 


84 LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 

might, I called upon the Blessed Virgin, and at the 
sacred name of Mary he took flight. Then I made 
an act of thanksgiving, and as well as I can remem¬ 
ber, I began singing those adorable words so terri¬ 
ble to the damned : Et Verbum caro factum est, et 
habitavit in nobis ! . . . It was our time of strict 
silence, but I was beside myself with fright. 
Though I did not see the demon with the eyes of my 
body, nevertheless, by the emotions of my soul, I well 
understood, that this was no ordinary dream. Satan, 
doubtless wanted to smother the ass of the Infant 
Jesus, but the Blessed Virgin came to its assistance.” * 

This devotion to the Holy Infancy Sister Saint- 
Pierre cherished to the last. Though called to be 
the instrument of works connected more intimately 
with the maturer years of our Saviour, and by this 
very fact associated with the dolorous scenes of the 
Passion, her virginal soul ever retained its sweet 
and simple impressions of that first and consoling 
Mystery. The consequences we will perceive in her 
communications with the Blessed Virgin, towards 
the last period of her mystical life. 

To keep her soul ever in the spirit of contempla¬ 
tion before the adorable Infant, she had ornamented 
two little statues, one of which she named her “Little 
King,” the other her “Poor King,” each dressed 
according to the character assigned it by her in¬ 
genuous tenderness. Sometimes the one, sometimes 
the other kept her company, and at her death¬ 
bed, we shall see how her pious and grateful charity 
delicately associated the favors of her “Little King ” 
with the benefactors of her monastery. 


* Document A, p. 52. 


CHAPTER VI. 


THE PROFESSION. 

“ My daughter, you must sacrifice to God not one thing, but all.” 

( Words of the Mother Prioress.) 

Sister Saint-Pierre’s year of Novitiate had ex¬ 
pired. For a long time, thoughts of the happy day 
when she could consecrate herself to God by the 
vows of religion, had sent a thrill of joy and expec¬ 
tation through that young soul, which was as hum¬ 
ble and pure as it was generous and fervent. She 
often and eagerly made known her desires to the 
Mother Prioress, but the latter seemed in no haste 
to grant her daughter that signal favor. 

“ But at last,” says the Sister, “ yielding to my 
pressing solicitations, she decided to attend to my 
Profession, n6twithstanding my small amount of 
virtue and capacity. I was told that before being 
received, it was necessary for me to present myself 
three times to the Chapter. I was now inspired to 
practice a little exercise of piety each time I presented 
myself, hoping by these means the more surely to 
obtain the object of my wishes—the Divine Infant 
Jesus for my Spouse. I therefore addressed myself 
to the three Persons who had any rights over 
8 85 


86 LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 

Him : the Eternal Father, the Blessed Virgin, and 
St. Joseph. These petitions, most fervently offered, 
were heard : in spite of my nnworthiness, the Com¬ 
munity had the charity to admit me to Profession, 
and I celebrated my spiritual espousals with Jesus. 
The priest, who in the world had directed my voca¬ 
tion, (Rev. Father Panager, pastor of the parish of 
Saint-Etienne at Rennes) preached on this occasion. 
He took for his text those beautiful words of the 
Blessed Virgin in the Magnificat: Beatam me dicent 
omnesgenercdiones —‘All nations shall call Me blessed ;* 
and showing me the beauty of the state I had 
embraced, he again and again repeated to me, ‘ You 
are blessed.* He was right. I beheld my vocation 
assured, and my desires accomplished. I was indeed 
at the summit of happiness ! ** * 

As the Sister glides somewhat lightly over this 
great act, we will supplement the omission by a few 
notes obtained from the Annals of the Monastery, 
of events which took place in the interval between 
her admission by the Chapter and the solemn cere¬ 
mony of Profession. During that period which 
lasted several weeks, the Novice prepared herself 
with admirable care and fervor ; she made the usual 
ten days* retreat, and observed such recollection that 
not once (as she herself acknowledged) did she raise 
her eyes, being, as it were, entirely lost in God. 
The day she pronounced her Vows, the Mother 
Prioress on leaving the chapel where she had 
received them, perceived another Novice, somewhat 
younger, who appeared very pensive, and she said 


* Document A, p. 53. 


THE PROFESSION, 


87 


to the newly Professed, “Let Peter go seek John ! ” 
Sister Saint-Pierre ran immediately, and threw her¬ 
self in the arms of her companion, promising that 
‘her turn would soon come/ which, in fact, really did 
a few months later, notwithstanding great obstacles. 
This Novice never forgot the impression she experi¬ 
enced at that moment of embracing Sister Saint- 
Pierre ; it had seemed to her as if she were near an 
angel. 

This Profession took place on the 8th of June, 
1841, a date worthy of mention. On so important 
an occasion, the Sister could not help giving the 
Divine Spouse another sensible mark of her love^ 
Here is the act which was the expression thereof : 

CONSECRATION. 

“ O my God ! deign to accept the sacrifice I offer 
Thee in union with Jesus, my Saviour, immolated 
for the salvation of the world. I make to Thee 
through Him, and with Him, the entire abandon¬ 
ment of myself, the sacrifice of my life ; I place my 
soul in Thy merciful Hands. And O Jesus, my 
beloved Spouse, I offer myself entirely to Thee 
upon the altar of Thy Divine Heart, through the 
hands of Mary and St. Joseph; it is by them, I lay 
thereon my Vows, that they may be guarantee and 
guardians of them. Accept, O cherished Family of 
my heart, the entire donation and. consecration I 
make of myself to Thy service. I offer myself 
entirely to Thee on this day through the hands of 
our holy mother Teresa, and our father St. John of 


88 LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 

the Cross, for the accomplishment of Thy designs in 
my soul. 

“ Look upon me as Thy property ; do Thou take 
charge of my holy Vows and accomplish them in 
me by Thy powerful protection. O Jesus, my 
Adorable Spouse, I am so poor, so miserable, so 
inconstant in good ! Permit me to borrow the 
sentiments and love of Thy holy Mother, and her 
august Spouse. Yes, it is through the voice and 
the heart of Mary and Joseph, I make my Pro¬ 
fession and promise Poverty, Chastity and Obedi¬ 
ence to Almighty God, our Saviour, and the 
Blessed Virgin Mary, under the guidance of our 
legitimate Superiors, according to the Primitive 
Buie of the Order of Mount Carmel of the Reform 
of St. Teresa without mitigation, until death. O 
divine Infant, I unite my sacrifice with that which 
Thou didst make to Thy Father at the time of Thy 
Presentation in the Temple; Thou hast sacrificed 
Thyself for my redemption, to-day, I sacrifice my¬ 
self to redeem Thee out of the hands of sinners. O 
Mary, my tender Mother, and thou, my good father 
St. Joseph, who didst present to the High Priest 
two small doves to repurchase the Infant Jesus, I 
supplicate you to offer the Eternal Father my body 
and soul, to repurchase this Divine Infant from the 
hands of sinners, and to heal the scars of His 
wounds. Beseech Him also, to imprint in me the 
features of His Divine likeness, or rather that it be 
no longer I who live, but Jesus who taking birth 
again, mayest live in me ! 

“O Jesus, Mary and Joseph! You know with 
what ardor and joy, I would have gone to offer 


THE PROFESSION. 


89 


myself to Your service, had I had the happiness of 
living when You dwelt on earth. With the same 
sentiments of love for You, do I wish to serve this 
holy Community, as if I beheld You dwelling in this 
house, I wish to do all for You, that thus all in me 
may be Yours. Henceforth look upon me as Your 
little servant, dispose of me according to Your good 
pleasure. Amen. 


Sister Marie of Saint-Pierre 
of the Holy Family, 

Unworthy Carmelite . 


June 8,1841. 


jj 


This Sister, on entering the Monastery, had taken 
the name of Mary, Titular Patroness of the entire 
Order of Mt. Carmel, to which was added, that of 
St. Peter, received at Baptism ; so the Prince of the 
Apostles was again assigned her for Protector. On 
the day of her Profession, as she desired to be more 
especially united to the Holy Family, to these 
names were appended that title, ever dear to her, 
and by which she is distinguished. Let us con¬ 
tinue the perusal of her own words : 

“ Having thus entirely given myself to Jesus as 
His little servant, He soon inspired me to guard 
His flocks in the pasture lands of His Divine In¬ 
fancy, and traced for me the plan of a little practice 
in honor of His twelve Mysteries, and His twelve 
years, which I shall call the twelve Tribes of Israel. 
Here is a little sketch of this devotion : 

“In honor of His first year, I offered Him 
through the hands of the Blessed Virgin and St. 
Joseph, and under the protection of Sts. Peter and 
8 * 


90 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


Paul, our Holy Father the Pope, and all ministers 
of the Holy Church. 

“ In honor of the second year, I offered Him 
under the protection of St. John and the holy 
Apostles, all Keligious. 

“Of the third, the Kings, under the protection 
of the holy King David and the Magi. 

“ Of the fourth, the erring Freemasons, under 
the protection of the holy Martyrs. 

“ Of the fifth, actors, under the protection of St. 
«John the Baptist. 

“ Of the sixth, infidel nations, under the protec¬ 
tion of the nine Choirs of Angels. 

“ Of the seventh, hereties and schismatics, under 
the protection of the Patriarchs. 

“ Of the eighth, the Jews, under the protection of 
Sts. Anne and Joachim. 

“ Of the ninth, unbelievers, under frhe protection 
of the holy Prophets. 

“ Of the tenth, hardened sinners, under the pro¬ 
tection of the holy Confessors. 

“ Of the eleventh, lukewarm Christians, under 
the protection of all holy Women. 

“And lastly, in honor of His twelfth year, the 
just, under the protection of our holy Mother 
Teresa, and all holy Virgins.” 

This was what she called tending the “ sheep-fold 
of the Infant Jesus,” a touching and admirable 
occupation, replete with zeal and devotion for the 
Church, and the salvation of souls ! Our Lord 
gave her this inspiration after her Profession, and 
to her mind, nothing corresponded better with the 


THE PROFESSION. 


91 


humble function, chosen by herself with so much 
love. 

“This adorable Saviour,” says she, “notwith¬ 
standing my unworthiness, soon took so great hold 
on my soul, that I could truly say He had become 
its Director and Master.” 

At this Divine school, the docile and faithful 
disciple made rapid progress in the ways of contem¬ 
plation, and the activity of her mind was constantly 
called into exercise in meditating upon the Life and 
Mysteries of our Lord. 

Beginning with the Holy Infancy, she succes¬ 
sively followed His Hidden, Dolorous and Glo¬ 
rious Life, from His Incarnation in Mary’s womb, 
until His triumphant Ascension. She had divided 
the day in such a manner, that each hour re¬ 
called to her some circumstance of these Mysteries, 
upon which she would concentrate her thoughts 
with lively faith and loving contemplation. So 
great was her attraction for this interior exercise, 
that she practiced as though naturally and without 
effort, what to others would have been troublesome 
and complicated. We can form some idea of this 
from the following succinct account made of it by 
herself, in obedience to the Rev. Mother Prioress. 

“At eight o’clock in the evening, I offer myself 
to the Blessed Virgin and St. Joseph, as their little 
servant, to take charge of their flocks upon the lands 
of the Infant Jesus, which are His Mysteries and 
Sacred Wounds, and I adore the Incarnation until 
nine o’clock. 

“At nine o’clock, when the bells are rung for 
Matins, I celebrate the birth of the Holy Infant 


92 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


Jesus, uniting myself with the angels, the shepherds 
and the Magi, who adored Him in the crib. 

“At the first Nocturn, I adore His eternal birth in 
the bosom of His Father, and His divine Life. At 
the second, I adore His birth in the stable, and His 
mortal Life. At the third, His Sacramental birth in 
the Eucharist, and His spiritual birth in our hearts. 

“At each of the nine Psalms, I unite myself with 
the nine choirs of angels. 

“At the Te Deurn , I adore the Infant Jesus, man¬ 
ifesting Himself to the Jewish people in the person 
of the shepherds. 

“ During the Psalms of Lauds, I adore the holy 
Child, circumcised and named Jesus, and then unite 
myself with the Magi, who render Him homage as 
God, King, and Man. This is my interior exercise 
during Matins.” 

The holy Carmelite, as we perceive, could not, 
during this part of the Divine Office, have given 
her mind and heart a more substantial and sweeter 
aliment ; for she thus practiced unconsciously the best 
method taught by liturgists and spiritual masters— 
that of keeping the mind during the Divine Office, 
and the recitation of public prayers, as much as pos¬ 
sible, united to the spirit of our Lord and the Mys¬ 
teries of His Life. 

In Carmel Matins complete the choir services of 
the day, and very soon the religious prepare to take 
their rest for the night; but Bister Saint-Pierre 
would fain linger upon her homage to the divine 
Infancy. “ Having entered our cell,” says she, “ I 
am occupied until eleven o’clock, with the flocks 
of the Holy Child Jesus, praying that amiable 


THE PROFESSION. 


93 


Saviour, to pour down benedictions upon His lambs, 
by applying to them His merits. After this, I retire 
to sleep, taking my rest in union with the holy 
Infant in His crib. 

“ In the morning, as soon as I hear the signal for 
rising, I get up, and adoring the Eternal Father, I 
say to Him with the Infant Jesus, ‘Here I am, 
Father ! I come to do Thy Will/ Then I repair to 
the choir for prayer, in union with the Blessed Vir¬ 
gin and St. Joseph, bearing the Infant Jesus to the 
Temple. During prayer, I offer myself with Him 
to the Celestial Father; I renew the holy Vows of 
my Profession, and give myself to that Divine 
Saviour ; then I offer Him to His Father for the 
salvation of His sheep. Prayer ended, we go with 
the Holy Family to Nazareth ; soon the bell rings 
for the Little Hours, and we start for Egypt. Dur¬ 
ing the twelve Psalms of the Little Hours, I adore 
the twelve years of the holy Infant Jesus, and I 
honor His sojourn in Egypt, His return to Naza¬ 
reth, and lastly, His dispute in the Temple of Jeru¬ 
salem with the Doctors of the Law. After the Holy 
Sacrifice of the Mass, comes the hour of work, dur¬ 
ing which time I contemplate the hidden and 
laborious life of our Saviour. At eleven o’clock, I 
adore Jesus baptized by St. John. From twelve to 
one, I contemplate Him in the desert ; from one to 
two, His evangelical life. At two o’clock, the bells 
are rung for Vespers ; then I adore His triumphant 
entry into the city of Jerusalem, and I go to the 
choir in company with our Divine Saviour ; during 
the Office, I place myself in spirit at His feet, hon¬ 
oring the sentiments of His adorable Heart during 


94 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


the last week He passed on earth with His disci¬ 
ples, and that excess of love which induced Him to 
institute the Sacrament of the Eucharist. Then, we 
arrive at the Garden of Olives, and the rest of the 
afternoon, in union with the Blessed Virgin, I fol¬ 
low our Lord in the Stations of His Passion. At 
five o’clock, the bell is rung for prayer.” (I must 
here observe, that in the daily life of a Carmelite 
and according to the spirit of her Buie, evening 
prayer holds an important place, and must last one 
hour, which knowledge explains to us the number and 
variety of devotions of Sister Saint-Pierre practiced 
during that exercise). “ I now,” says she, “ adore 
Jesus Crucified, placing myself either at the foot of 
the Cross or in the Sacred Heart. I begin by mak¬ 
ing my examination of conscience, and after an 
humble acknowledgment of my faults, I give my¬ 
self entirely to our Lord, renewing my holy Vows 
in union with His sacrifice on Mount Calvary. After 
I have thus given myself to Him, it seems to me that 
He reciprocally gives Himself to me, with all His 
merits ; and He unites my soul to His, making me 
participate in His desires, and the honor He renders 
His Father as a Victim. After this, I lose sight of 
myself, in contemplating with my celestial Spouse, 
the glory of God, and the salvation of souls. I find 
in the Heart of our Lord, all the Mysteries of His 
most holy Life, His merits and all His flocks, I 
offer each Mystery to the Eternal Father for this or 
that portion of the sheep-fold of the Infant Jesus; 
then, I present to this Divine Father the four quar¬ 
ters of the globe, which I have placed in the four 
Wounds of the Feet and Hands of my Saviour, the 


THE PROFESSION. 


95 


twelve flocks of the Holy Family occupying the 
sheep-fold of the Sacred Heart. I add also the 
souls in Purgatory, having placed them in the 
other Wounds of that Adorable Body. Then I offer 
this August Victim to the Eternal Father, through 
the hands of the Blessed Virgin, as a Holocaust 
of thanksgiving, of expiation, of impétration, arid 
of complacency and good will for all the perfec¬ 
tions of the Most Holy Trinity. Finally, I adore 
the last sigh of Jesus upon the Cross. Such is 
the method our Lord inspires me to follow dur¬ 
ing my evening prayer,” which method, especially 
adapted to her disposition, is, in reality, notwith¬ 
standing the apparent multiplicity of the acts com¬ 
posing it, very simple, natural and practical. Habit 
and grace rendered it easy and agreeable. As she 
says, ‘ she did not lose sight of our Lord/ and on 
retiring from prayer, she continued united to Him. 
“The rest of the evening, I am occupied until 
Complin, with Jesus in the sepulchre. Then, I 
adore Him in His glorious Resurrection and His 
Ascension. Such is a picture of my daily exercises; 
but in order to let the Divine Master lead me thus, 
it is necessary that I avoid whatever may flatter my 
senses ; there must be no self-seeking, save what will 
humble me. God alone, His will and His glory,— 
behold my motto and my aim. These words : ‘And 
He was submissive to them,’ and these, ‘I came not to 
be served , but to serve , are always before my mind. 
Our Lord makes me feel how incapable I am of all 
good, and how deep is my misery. The Child Jesus 
leads His ass by the bridle of His holy grace, I have 
only to obey and renounce my will.” 


96 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


There is no reason to be astonished at the self- 
renunciation and sentiments of humility, with which 
the good Sister shows herself so penetrated; they 
were the fruits of her meditations on the Mysteries 
of our Lord’s life and death. The Mother Prioress, 
to whom these accounts of her interior state were 
confided, and who watched her closely, truly believed 
that she recognized in her daughter the operations of 
grace ; though in order to be assured of the spirit 
by which she was led, she did not spare the 
newly Professed the test of trials, inflicting upon 
her frequent humiliations, reprimanding her, mak¬ 
ing it a point to cross her, and commanding her to 
follow the ordinary course. 

“ I did,” says the pious girl, “ what I could to 
obey her, but I soon found myself in the same path. 
Then our Mother permitted me to speak to a good 
Father well versed in the interior life, (a religious), 
and said to me, 6 My daughter, tell him exactly how 
you make your prayer, and in what manner God 
leads you.’ Gratefully complying with this charita¬ 
ble permission, I opened my heart to him. Having 
carefully examined all, he said : ‘ My daughter, con¬ 
tinue without fear to follow our Lord’s inspirations ; 
you have established the foundation upon the spirit 
of mortification ; say to your Reverend Mother, that 
I am satisfied ; I will also speak to her myself.” 
Our prudent Mother now permitted me to abandon 
myself to the spirit of God, but she wisely counseled 
me to be very faithful to grace, and not to remain 
inactive when the divine impulse had passed away. 
As I had then no employment which could distract 
me from the nresence of God, my whole days were, 


THE PROFESSION. 


97 


if I may thus express it, ‘an unbroken medita¬ 
tion/ Work did not hinder my converse with 
our Lord. Having no occasion of practicing virtue, 
I had no great merit ; but our Reverend Mother, 
always watchful over the spiritual advancement of 
my soul, soon gave me an office very fruitful in this 
respect—the duty of turn-Sister. This distracting 
employment was scarcely in harmony with my 
attraction for silence and prayer, but I looked upon 
our Mother’s command as an order from Heaven, 
and joyfully obeyed, feeling* that the Infant Jesus 
in assigning me this duty on the very Feast of the 
Incarnation, was giving me a certain proof that He 
had chosen me for His little servant, and would 
make use of me in this new capacity, to perform 
the errands of the house. I then made a new act of 
consecration to the Divine Child.” 

We must note here that the position of turn-Sister, 
as it is understood in Carmel, and which was given 
Sister Saint-Pierre, is exercised solely within the 
enclosure, she who has this office receiving all mes¬ 
sages from without, and transmitting those from 
within. It must not be confounded with that of 
out-Sister, who beyond the enclosure directly com¬ 
municates with persons in the world. The latter 
is indeed attached to the Monastery, being a mem¬ 
ber of the Third Order of our Lady of Mount 
Carmel, but her profession and functions differ 
essentially from those of cloistered nuns. The office 
of turn-Sister has unavoidably its moments of 
fatigue ; and she who called herself the poor ass of 
the Infant Jesus, was more than once compelled to 
ask relief from her master, in the person of her Supe- 
9 


98 LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 

rioress. The distractions and active duties inseparable 
from this position, were precisely what the Mother 
Prioress deemed fitting tests of the virtue of the 
good Sister, so absorbed in prayer and recollection. 
Hence, this employment became for her a perpetual 
means of practicing penance and self-renunciation, 
in addition to which she followed the austerities of 
the Pule, and even practiced some of her own choice, 
being always careful, however, to keep within the 
limits of discretion ; indeed, her entire life, interior 
and exterior was a continuous mortification, which 
freed her from the dominion of the senses. She 
had asked for a statuette of the Infant Jesus, and 
the request was granted. She relates this fact with 
her usual simplicity : “ I greatly desired to have 
a little statue of the Infant Jesus, in order to ren¬ 
der Him homage during the day. I hesitated to 
ask this of our Reverend Mother, but one day it 
seemed to me, that the Divine Child urged me to 
do so. I obeyed the inspiration, and my request 
was granted. Having now the Holy Child Jesus 
in our turn-room, my joy was extreme. I offered 
Him all my little labors, and the wages I asked of 
Him in return, were souls. Notwithstanding my 
unworthiness, this Divine Child conferred upon me 
such especial graces that my employment in no wise 
hindered my spirit of recollection ; and as heretofore 
during prayer, I was united to God. I labored 
during the day for the salvation of the flocks of the 
Infant Jesus, and at prayer, He repaid me a hun¬ 
dred fold. Sometimes also, during the day, He 
would visit my soul with irresistible movements of 
grace. When I felt the approach of His Presence, 


THE PEOFESSION. 


99 


I would somewhat remit work, in order to hearken 
the more easily to Him, but deeming our Reverend 
Mother’s permission necessary for this, I asked it of 
her. As her charity for my soul, inclined her to 
to neglect nothing that could exercise me in virtue, 
she forbade me to notice these interior impulses, and 
likewise added : ‘ I permit you, only to recollect 
yourself a little, when your mind is very much dis¬ 
tracted.’ And, thanks be to God, I followed in all 
things her wise counsel.” 

In the year 1843, our Lord inspired Sister Saint- 
Pierre to pray for Spain, which was then in a state 
of Revolution. That Catholic country, St. Teresa’s 
native land, and the cradle of the Reform of Carmel, 
must naturally have interested her. Hence, it is not 
astonishing, that at this time when its religious 
were persecuted, and sent into exile, she was moved 
to remember it before God. “ I have never,” says 
she, “ felt my soul so united to our Lord, as during 
that period. This Divine Master was operating in 
me something which I can neither explain nor 
understand. It seemed to me that I heard Him 
ask mercy of His Father for that kingdom, and in 
a manner so pressing that I was astonished thereat ; 
He made me speak in His name; but I perceive 
that in endeavoring to explain this mystery of love, 
I only succeed in changing its nature, so, I aban¬ 
don it into the Hand of God.” * 

The spirit of the Lord continued to wield a 
stronger influence over His servant, and the gener¬ 
ous Professed felt herself urged to make that act of 


* Document A, p. 62. 


100 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


complete sacrifice, which she had been inspired to 
do, at the time of her entrance in Carmel; but her 
Superiors always refused the permission. In the 
year 1843, she suddenly had occasion to repeat her 
request. There was question of the Carmelites 
leaving their ancient convent, and seeking a suit¬ 
able location in another part of the city, for the erec¬ 
tion of a new one. This important event is inti¬ 
mately connected with the life of the Mother Prioress, 
Marie of the Incarnation, and consequently, with that 
of Sister Saint-Pierre. The following is quoted from 
the Annals of the Monastery : 

“ For a long time, our monastery had been an 
obstacle to projects for the embellishment of the 
city ; jnoreover, our neighbors had erected new 
buildings, which, on all sides, overlooking our 
house and garden, were of serious inconvenience 
to us as regards regularity, to say nothing of the 
unhealthiness of such contracted quarters. 

“Yet, of ourselves, we would not have decided 
upon such a change, for we could ill brook the idea 
of leaving that ancient cradle of our Foundation, 
that abode of Saints, witness of the virtues of our 
first Mothers, that precious spot, but lately recov¬ 
ered after so many labors and troubles. But when 
least expected, unforeseen circumstances hastened 
the moment of this dread sacrifice. Several per¬ 
sons made us advantageous offers for the house, the 
annoyances of our surroundings increased daily, and 
the city authorities were on the eve of carrying out 
their projects;—we were really forced to an immedi¬ 
ate decision. Before concluding a bargain with our 
purchasers, the first thought was to find another 


THE PROFESSION. 


101 


suitable location. After much search, our Superiors 
found the one which the Providence of God had 
reserved for us ; it was in a retired quarter, near the 
Archiépiscopal palace, a quiet, healthy spot, and free 
from such annoyances of surrounding buildings as 
now beset us ; in a word, it seemed expressly adapted 
for our mode of life. We made the purchase at 
once, relying upon the treasury of our Celestial 
Father, for we had not the least part of the sum 
requisite for such an understanding. The first alms 
received for this purpose is worthy of mention. It 
came from a poor and virtuous old man, who touched 
at our necessities, as we afterwards learned, gave us 
the last coin he possessed. His offering resembled 
that of the widow in the Gospel, and likewise, was 
it agreeable to God, for it brought us many bless¬ 
ings. But our Lord, in order to keep our souls in 
a state of perfect dépendance on Him, permitted 
that these succors should come only when we were 
in urgent need, and all hope seemingly lost,—more¬ 
over, they nearly always came through unexpected 
channels. In a moment of great distress we had 
recourse to St. Yves, the advocate of the poor, and 
he assisted us in a truly extraordinary manner. He 
inspired a lady of high rank, whose modesty forces 
us to conceal her name, to give us substantial proof 
of her good will, although she scarcely knew our 
Community. With the title and privileges of bene¬ 
factress, she has acquired the strongest claims on -our 
gratitude.” * 

* Annals of the Community of Carmel of Tours, p. 75. 

9 * 


102 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


As one can readily understand, this weighty 
undertaking, was, from the beginning, the occa¬ 
sion of much care and solicitude to the Prioress, 
Mother Marie of the Incarnation. She naturally 
recommended the project to Sister Saint-Pierre, 
and enjoined her to pray the Child Jesus to guide 
His Spouses in the selection of a proper loca¬ 
tion. “I prayed to the Divine Infant for this 
intention,” says the Sister, “ and asked Him for a 
piece of ground ; but it seemed to me that I heard 
Him answering in the depths of my soul : ‘ Give me 
the ground of your heart .’ I perfectly understood 
His meaning ;—He also had an edifice to erect to the 
glory of His Father, and had long since chosen the 
miserable soil of my soul for the accomplishment of 
His designs, and notwithstanding my unworthiness, 
He would, with so miserable a means, make the end 
redound to His greater glory.” 

She went with this communication to the- Mother 
Prioress, who immediately began speaking to her of 
the great anxiety she felt concerning the onerous 
enterprise they had undertaken. “ This good 
Mother,” says the Sister, “was in need of some 
diversion, so I gave her a little at which she 
laughed heartily. ‘My good Mother/ said I, 
‘ when a person has no money, and wishes to raise 
some, the beast of burden is sold ; if you sell me to 
the Infant Jesus, He will give you the funds to 
build your house.’ Our Pev. Mother was amused 
at my strange proposal, but I insisted, and said to 
her, ‘ Mother, I am not worth much, but since the 
Holy Child wants me, and has asked for me, He 
will purchase me.’ Charmed at the thought of 


THE PROFESSION. 


103 


being able to sell myself for our Lord, for Him who 
had allowed Himself to be sold by Judas for love 
of me, I continued : “ Mother, how much will you 
take for me ? Our Reverend Mother, do ubtless per¬ 
ceiving by my earnest manner that perhaps our 
Lord had some designs in this, at length acceded 
to my request, and said : ‘ Well then, my child, 
tell the Infant Jesus that if I were rich, I would 
give you to Him ; but as I am poor, and in need 
of money to build His holy house, I find myself 
obliged to sell you; ask Him to purchase you/ 
This answer gave me great pleasure; I addressed 
the Holy Child Jesus, and delivered our Reverend 
Mother’s message. I conjured Him to purchase 
me, in order that I might be all His, according 
to His Will. One night after this, whilst fer¬ 
vently praying to Him, offering Him the love of 
the shepherds, the Magi, and other saints who had 
beheld and adored Him, thus weaving for Him a 
little crown in honor of the twelve years of His 
Holy Infancy, which homage I believe was espec¬ 
ially acceptable to Him, I thought I beheld Him 
in the interior of my soul, and He made me under¬ 
stand these words : ‘ Tell your Mother Prioress to 
write to a certain person, and she will send her an 
alms to help build the convent.’ Oh ! what delight¬ 
ful news ! Here is proof already that the Holy Child 
will purchase His little ass. I went to our good 
Mother and delivered the message. The person in 
question lived sixty leagues from Tours ; I was but 
slightly acquainted with her, and our Reverend 
Mother did not know her at all. Nevertheless, 
wishing to be assured of the communication which 


104 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


I had transmitted to her, she wrote to the party, 
omitting, however, mention of the incident just 
related. As there was some delay in the answer, I 
began to fear; but the Holy Child reassured me. 
At last came a letter from the lady, enclosing a note 
of five hundred francs.* 

“ This alms, one of the first our Reverend Mother 
Prioress received, was as the guarantee of what the 
Divine Saviour intended to give her hereafter. I 
was delighted at our getting it, and in thanksgiving, 
said five hundred Laudate to the Infant Jesus. I 
asked our Reverend Mother if this amount was not 
more than sufficient to purchase an ass, and whether 
she would consent now to give me entirely to the 
Holy Child, who had sent her that sum. But still 
wishing to try my patience and test further the 
spirit by which I was led, she replied that she was 
yet very much in need of money to build our Lord’s 
house, and He must send her a far greater sum than 
that, ere she could grant me the permission I asked.’’ 

The good Sister therefore redoubled her fervor, 
as much for the glory of Him who claimed her, as for 
the material assistance of her Mother Prioress, whom 
she beheld in so urgent need. One of her devo¬ 
tions was to say the beautiful Invitatory of the Feast 
of the Holy Name of Jesus : Admirabile Nomen Jem 
quo est super omne nomen; venite adoremus: “The 
Name which shall be called wonderful, the Name of 
Jesus, is the Name which is above every name. 
Oh ! come let us worship Him ! ” She repeated it 

* This amount, small for our day, was large when counted in 
francs and considering what it would purchase at that time.— 
(Translator’s note.) 


THE PROFESSION. 


105 


thousands of times, and engaged other members of 
the Community to unite with her, so as to multiply 
this act of praise, thus forming a series of invoca¬ 
tions, which she assimilated to as many drafts drawn 
upon Divine Providence. Her confidence was always 
recompensed. One day during prayer, she found 
herself seemingly in a building which was in course 
of erection. “ Our Lord made me understand,” says 
she, “ how glorious and meritorious a thing it is to 
build an abode for Him ; He told me that our Mother 
would have many cares and trials in this undertak¬ 
ing, but that I would furnish her with the ( stones/ 
He also charged me to warn her not to be over 
anxious, that if the monastery was built according 
to the spirit of St. Teresa, He Himself would pay 
all, and that alms would come to us from various 
quarters. ‘ But/ added He, ‘ if, on the contrary, the 
house be not built according to that SDirit.—let pay 
who will !’ 

“ My message was a very embarrassing one, which 
I hardly dared deliver to our good Mother ; how¬ 
ever, I must needs do violence to myself in order 
to accomplish our Lord’s Will. When I had ac¬ 
quainted her with this communication, she told me 
that she had scarcely slept the previous night, being 
so worried about the architect’s proposed plan, which 
was not suitable to our customs. She now drew 
another perfectly conformable to the spirit of St. 
Teresa. Then our Lord had reason to be better 
pleased, and was ready to fulfil His promise.” 

The “ stones ” Sister Saint-Pierre had to furnish, 
were, as she afterwards comprehended, the prayers 
for the Keparation of blasphemy, which outrage the 


106 LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 

glory of God’s holy Name. These prayers were to 
draw down the greatest blessings upon the house. 

The Work of the Reparation, in fact, was soon to 
be manifested to her. One day, when the pious 
virgin was speaking to her Prioress of the many 
graces she had received previous to her entrance into 
Carmel, the latter replied, that as these favors were 
now withdrawn, she had doubtless been unfaithful 
to God. “ Make then a reparation to Him for all 
your short-comings,” continued the good Mother, 
“and pray Him to put your «oui in the state in 
which it was when He used to communicate Him¬ 
self to it.” “ I will obey you, Mother,” said the 
Sister, “ and I will beg our Lord to pardon me for 
your sake.” “ My soul at this time,” writes the 
Sister, “ was greatly agitated, and prayer was diffi¬ 
cult; my imagination was like an unbroken horse 
that I could not control, but the Divine Master, in 
His goodness, hearkened to my prayer, dictated my 
obedience. On awaking next morning, I heard an 
interior voice which said to me, ‘Return to the house 
of Thy Father , which is none other than My Heart’ 
These words at once brought great peace to my soul. 
Having gone to prayer, I united myself to our Lord 
in the most Blessed Sacrament, and immediately I 
heard Him say to me, ‘Apply yourself to honoring 
My Pleart, and that of My Mother ; do not separate 
them ; pray to them for yourself and for sinners ; 
then I will forget your past ingratitude, and bestow 
upon you more graces than heretofore, because you 
are now more closely united to Me by your Vows!” 

As she doubted whether it was really our Lord 
who had spoken to her, He relieved her mind by say- 


THE PROFESSION. 


107 


ing, “ It is I, Jesus, present in the Blessed Sacra¬ 
ment, Who speak to you. I have various ways oî 
communicating Myself to souls ; do you not perceive 
that yours is now calm, and united to Me, though 
but so lately the prey of distractions ? Begin to do 
as I tell you, and you will soon experience the salu¬ 
tary effects.” 

“ Then,” writes the Sister, “ He made me under¬ 
stand, that I must not set too much stress on sensi¬ 
ble devotion, and gave me light to see, that people 
attach themselves to interior sweetness, thinking 
they are thus attaching themselves to Him. Fol¬ 
lowing His counsels, I have applied myself inter¬ 
iorly in honoring these two amiable Hearts, and 
even exteriorly, by embroidering scapulars whereon 
They were represented, and I prayed Him to save 
those who would wear Them. I told Him I did 
not crave these sensible graces, i Behold ! ' said I, 
* my only desire is that Thou wilt be greatly glori¬ 
fied and many souls saved/” 

The Sister continues : “ For that intention, I have 
offered my will to the Father, my memory to the 
Son, and my understanding to the Holy Ghost. I 
have also given myself up into the Hands of God; 
and I felt that through the pains of interior suffer¬ 
ings, He willed to purify my soul, for I have since 
been plunged in bitterness, lost in darkness, and 
assailed by temptations. But, my greatest anguish 
arose from my longings to love and glorify the 
Lord; my soul hungered for God, and it seemed 
to me, that, beholding in myself only sin and 
misery, all I did was as nothing. 


108 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


“ I desired to have a certain book which would 
have brought me consolation, and I asked it of our 
Mother; but notwithstanding her usual kindness, 
she refused my request, saying, ‘ My daughter, you 
must sacrifice to God, not one thing, but all/ An¬ 
other time, being in still greater suffering, I wished 
to open my heart to her ; but the , good God ? in¬ 
spired her to assist Him in making me journey in 
this vale of death ; and she, always so compassion¬ 
ate, not only refused to listen to my troubles, but 
even forbade my mentioning them to my confessor 
for fifteen days. Through the grace of God, I sub¬ 
mitted with good heart to this trial. The demon of 
blasphemy was one fruitful source of not the least 
of my sufferings, but I clung to the cross during 
the tempest, not daring to say to God, ‘ Oh ! give 
me Thy salutary assistance/ 

“ I offered my sufferings to our Lord for the sal¬ 
vation of souls, and the accomplishment of His 
designs. One day I said to Him, ‘ My God, Thou 
seest that I now know my nothingness and misery ! , 
meaning, ‘ It is enough, O my God ! I can now dis¬ 
cern Thy gifts, and I will not attribute them to 
myself, for I truly comprehend my poverty and 
nothingness/ ” 

At last, she felt urged to have recourse to her holy 
Mother Teresa; she began a Novena in her honor, 
and before it was ended, she had been withdrawn 
from this critical and painful state.* Our Lord is 
now going to resume that course of extraordinary 
communications with His servant, which had ceased 


*Life in MS., 1 part, p. 137. 


THE PROFESSION. 


109 


for nearly two years. But, it was first necessary, 
that the Sister, “ return to the house of her Father,” 
this is, to the Heart of Jesus, where like gold in the 
furnace, her soul should be purified by the fire of 
suffering and love. 

The cultus of the Holy Face is the corollary of 
devotion to the Sacred Heart ; the one is the mani¬ 
festation and complement of the other. The Divine 
Master, in the order of His designs over His faith¬ 
ful servant, willed that she should reach the inmost 
depths of His Sacred Heart, ere being initiated in 
the Reparative Mystery of His Dolorous Face.* 

*M. Dupont, establishing a connection between the revela¬ 
tions of Blessed Margaret Mary and those of Sister Saint-Pierre 
says : “ If the Heart of Jesus be the emblem of love, His Ador¬ 
able Face is the expression of sufferings endured for us.” (Life 
of M. Dupont, b. 11, p. 93). Upon this subject, a distinguished 
writer of the Society of Jesus, Rev. Father Cros, has written the 
following notes, which will furnish matter for pious reflections : 
“ The Heart is the symbol of love, the Face is the mirror of the 
soul ; the Face is the living, speaking reflection of the Heart ; 
the Face expresses what the heart symbolizes, but lacking utter¬ 
ance, cannot reveal,—love, sorrow,—all the sentiments of the 
soul ; therefore, the Church seldom looks with complacent eye 
upon images of the Heart of Jesus if the Heart be isolated from 
the Face. It is the Face which prompts me to say , 1 Behold ! here 
is some one.’ When I have before me both the Face and the 
Heart of Jesus, I have before me Jesus , and a complete symbol 
of His love, and the sentiments of His soul. It was thus He 
showed Himself to Blessed Margaret Mary, and the Face of 
Jesus in that vision was surely the light, the life and the ex¬ 
pression of the Heart; that Face of Jesus at Paray-le-Monial 
was a dolorous Face, a holy Face. ‘Behold,’ said He, ‘ this Heart 
which has loved mankind so much, and which receives from 
them in return only ingratitude ! ’—It was surely not joy that 
the Face of Jesus expressed.” 


10 


CHAPTER VII. 


THE GOLDEN ARROW. 

“The earth is covered with crime. The Holy Name of God 
blasphemed, and the profanation of the Lord’s Day fill up the 
measure of iniquities. Never before have these crimes reached 
such a pitch. . . . My Name is everywhere blasphemed ; 
eyen children blaspheme!” (Our Lord’s words to the Sister). 

Almost four years had elapsed since the young 
Bretonne, conducted to Tours by her father, had left 
the world and crossed the threshold of Carmel’s 
cloister. Clothed in the holy Habit, and a Professed 
Religious for two years, she had generously and 
unreservedly given herself up to the interior move¬ 
ments of grace, ready to second its designs, which 
until now had remained absolutely hidden from her. 
This Divine grace suffers not delay and hesitation in 
the favored souls whom it selects; but, like the 
Supreme Wisdom whence it emanates, whilst pur¬ 
suing its end with force from one extremity to the 
other, it also prepares its way with prudence and 
mildness, doing all things, says Holy Writ, ‘ with 
order, Aveight and measure, according to the nature 
of needs and times/ Thus was it pleased to act in 
regard to Sister Marie de Saint-Pierre, indirectly 
110 


THE GOLDEN ARROW. 


Ill 


preparing her soul for its manifestations, in trying 
her by alternate hours of consolation and anguish, a 
successive mingling of light and darkness. The 
time has arrived when the aim is to be shown 
her ; the designs of God upon this chosen soul will 
be manifest, and the communications will assume a 
more definite form. Continuing with her His mys¬ 
terious colloquies, the celestial Spouse will first 
reveal to her the crimes on earth most displeasing to 
His Heart and offensive in His eyes, and hence most 
provocative of His just anger ; then, after declaring 
to her the urgent need of an especial reparation, par¬ 
ticularly adapted to these crimes, which must be 
expiated, He will suggest to her the acts, and the 
formula of prayers meet to console His Heart and 
appease His wrath. Finally, before the close of the 
year, to the holy Sister’s great terror, He will desig¬ 
nate the culpable nation, which of all in the Church 
most merits the Divine chastisements. The com¬ 
munications made to our Carmelite upon this subject 
refer to the first part of her mission. She herself 
writes an especial “ account,” which we shall repro¬ 
duce as literally as possible. It is a series of letters 
prefaced by the following declaration : 

“ Before beginning this account : I declare in all 
truth and simplicity of soul, that it is solely desire 
to advance the greater glory of God, and the accom¬ 
plishment of His most Holy Will, which urge me 
to make known what I believe our Lord in His 
mercy has communicated to me concerning the Work 
of Reparation for blasphemy. I will transcribe the 
letters I have addressed to our most Reverend 
Mother Prioress, adding thereto what may be neces- 


112 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


sary to make myself better understood, likewise, the 
remarks I have made by word of mouth, or what 1 
have since remembered. I declare that the motive 
actuating me to make these corrections is this : I 
usually write in haste on account of my duties as 
turn-Sister, being forced by lack of leisure to express 
in the briefest manner possible, what our Lord has 
operated in my soul. The Reverend Mother herself, 
by reason of her numerous occupations, has not 
always sufficient time to allow me to give her a 
detailed account as soon as I receive these lights. 
But as I am always in great suffering until I have 
made known to my Superioress what has been com¬ 
municated to me, I have resolved to make note of 
these communications immediately, and I feel relieved 
as soon as I have delivered them to her. After this 
little prelude, I will write under the star of obedi¬ 
ence, in all simplicity. I again declare, that if it 
needed only the slightest falsehood to obtain the 
establishment of this Work, most assuredly, I would 
never consent to utter one, for God is truth ! I have 
implicit confidence that He will Himself defend His 
cause, as He has promised me.” * 

In her first letter, the Sister gives several details 
which we have mentioned in the preceding chapter. 
With her we have now reached the following: inter- 
esting communication, subject of her second letter. 

It was on the 26th of August, 1843, the day fol¬ 
lowing the Feast of St. Louis, who is especially 
honored as the protector of France, the defender of 
the Roman Church, and the avenger of the Divine 


* Document B, pp. 1 and 2. 


THE GOLDEN ARROW. 


113 


Majesty outraged by blasphemy—(this date is not 
one of mere chance, and we shall hereafter show its 
significance)—that a thunderstorm of unparalleled 
fury, suddenly burst forth from a blazing sky, over 
the city of Tours. 

“ I had never before,” says the Carmelite virgin, 
“ felt the justice of an irritated God as I did 
then ; therefore, prostrate on the ground, I un¬ 
ceasingly offered our Lord Jesus Christ to His 
Father for the expiation of my sins, and the needs 
of Holy Church. One of my Sisters experienced 
the same emotion as myself.” In fact, in the eyes 
of faith, and according to the doctrine of the Apos¬ 
tles, the phenomena of nature are the sensible pic¬ 
tures of invisible and supernatural things. Hence, 
the thunder’s terrible voice, and the lightning’s vivid 
flash seemed to the pious nun, direct expression of 
the wrath of the Most High ; in her eyes, the light¬ 
ning strokes were as arrows to slay the enemies of 
God. Fully impressed with this belief, about five 
o’clock she began her evening prayer. Placing her¬ 
self in spirit at the foot of the Cross, as was her 
wont, she at once familiarly asked our Lord the 
“ cause of His wrath.” The Divine Master, who 
had been trying her sorely of late, immediately re¬ 
laxed His manner towards her, and said : “ I have 
heard your sighs, I have witnessed your ardent 
desire to glorify Me ; this desire comes not from 
yourself, it is I who have given it birth.” 

The Sister continues: “Then He opened His 
Heart to me, and gathering there the powers of my 
soul He addressed me in these words ‘ My Name is 
everywhere blasphemed , even children blaspheme .’ And 
10 * 


114 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


He made me understand that this frightful sin more 
than any other, grievously wounds His Divine 
Heart ; by blasphemy, the sinner curses Him to His 
Face, attacks Him openly, annuls Redemption, and 
pronounces his own condemnation and judgment. 
Blasphemy is a poisoned arrow, ever wounding His 
Heart. He told me, that He wished to give me a 
“ Golden Arrow” wherewith to wound His Heart 
delightfully, and heal these wounds inflicted by sin¬ 
ner’s malice. Here is the formula of this Act of 
Praise, which our Lord, notwithstanding my great 
unworthiness, dictated to me for the Reparation of 
blasphemy against His Holy Name ; He has given 
it to me as a “ Golden Arrow” assuring me that 
each time I would say it, I would open His Heart 
with a wound of love : 

THE GOLDEN ARROW. 

“ ‘ May the most holy, most sacred, most ador¬ 
able, most mysterious and unutterable Name of 
God, be praised, blessed, loved, adored, and glori¬ 
fied, in heaven, on earth and in hell, by all God’s 
creatures, and by the Sacred Heart of our Lord and 
Saviour Jesus Christ in the Most Holy Sacrament 
of the Altar. Amen.’ ” 

The Sister interrupts this thrilling narration to 
explain a word contained in this Act of Praise. 

“As I felt,” says she, “a certain astonishment 
when our Lord said to me, in the infernal regions 
( dans les enfers ), He had the goodness to make me 
understand, that His justice was glorified there. I 
beg also that notice be taken, that He did not say 


THE GOLDEN ARROW. 


115 


to me {dans V enfer) in Hell , but ( dans les enfers) in 
the infernal regions,* which may include Purgatory, 
where He is loved and glorified by the suffering 
souls. For the word hell (enfer) is applicable, not 
only to the abode of the damned ; faith teaches us 
that the Saviour after His death ‘descended into 
Hell/ meaning that place where the souls of the 
just awaited His coming; and does not Holy 
Church pray her Divine Spouse, to deliver the 
souls of her children from ‘ the gates of Hell ? : A 
porta inferi , Erue Domine , ânimas eôrumf (Office of 
the Dead).” 

To these explanations may be added the authority 
of St. Paul, who, in one of his Epistles uses the 
same expression in a similar sense. He says : 
“That at the Name of Jesus, every knee should 
bend of those which are in Heaven, on Earth and 
under the Earth.” f 

* This necessitates a little explanation to those unacquainted 
with French. As the Sister says, our Lord used the plural 
expression, 11 dans les enfers ,” which literally translated would 
be, “ in the hells,” or we might say “ infernal regions ; ” but 
the latter does not strike us as the exact expression applicable 
here, and the former, “the hells” good usage does not sanction 
in English, so using the singular number, “in hell,” we have 
given “ the Golden Arrow ” as it generally appears in our lan¬ 
guage.—(Translator’s note). 

f Philip II, 10. 

Not wishing to give the literal translation in the text I 
give it here: “That at the Name of Jesus every knee must 
bend among the dwellers of Heaven, Earth and Hells ( des 
enfers ).’ ’—(Translator). 

“ Lit : 1 of the heavenly, earthly, and infernal beings .’ The 
angels are commanded to adore Him. Men on earth give Him 
homage, and such as refuse it now must give it hereafter. 
Demons feel His power.”—(Kenrick’s New Testament, Philip 
II, Note 12). 


116 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


Sister Saint-Pierre continues : “ Our Lord having 
given me this ‘ Golden Arrow/ added : 4vail your¬ 
self of this favor, for I shall demand an account of 
it from you/ At that moment it seemed to me, I 
beheld issuing from the Sacred Heart of Jesus 
pierced by this i Arrow/ torrents of graces for the 
conversion of sinners, which vision inspired me 
with confidence to say, ‘ My Lord, do you then give 
me charge of blasphemers V ” 

This question will be answered later. The Divine 
Master for the present said no more to His servant. 
What He had just communicated to her was doubt¬ 
less sufficiently decisive, and food indeed for serious 
reflection. “ Feeling my weakness,” says she, “ and 
fearing the demon, I have prayed the Blessed Vir¬ 
gin to vouchsafe to guard what her Divine Son had 
just confided to me.” As usual, she did not fail to 
write this important communication and take it 
immediately to the Mother Prioress, making it an 
act of obedience to do so. The latter received it 
with apparent indifference, but when the Sister had 
left her presence and she became cognizant of its 
contents, this revelation flashed upon her as a ray of 
light. She began to suspect the gravity of the part 
which God had assigned to one of her nuns, and 
foresaw the responsibility of the position, wherein 
she and her monastery might, in consequence, here¬ 
after be placed ; for not only was the formula of 
Praise to the Holy Name of God to be recited by 
the individual to whom our Lord had revealed it, 
but He had ordered her (the Sister) to make it 
known, to^spread it abroad. To a Superioress as 
prudent as Mother Marie of the Incarnation, there 


THE GOLDEN ARROW. 


117 


was, in this circumstance, much food for reflec¬ 
tion.* 

“ Since that communication, my soul,” says the 
Sister, “ is completely changed, and wholly occupied 
in glorifying the most Holy Name of God. Our 
Lord has inspired me to add to the ‘ Golden Arrow ’ 
some prayers, in the form of twenty-four acts of 
adoration, to make atonement for the blasphemies 
uttered at each hour of the day, and He has con¬ 
descended to let me know that He accepted this 
exercise, and He wished it diffused abroad. This 
Divine Saviour has made me participate in His own 
ardent desire of seeing the Name of His Father 
glorified. He told me to devote myself to praising 
and blessing this adorable Name, in imitation of the 
angels in heaven who ceaselessly sing : Sanctus , 
Sanctus , Sanctus , that thus I would fulfil the order 
He had given me of honoring His Heart and His 
holy Mother’s, both grievously wounded by blas¬ 
phemy. He has also made me understand that this 
would not prevent me from honoring Him in His 
mysteries, as I was accustomed to do ; because, in all 
the mysteries of His Life, His Heart has suffered 
for the sin of blasphemy.” Finally, she adds, “ I 
comprehend also that the more agreeable is anything 
to God, the more bitter does Satan try to make it, 
that thereby the soul may be disgusted ; yet such 
obstacles increase our merit if we are faithful and 
persevere. Our Divine Saviour gave me these in¬ 
structions to sustain me under the trials I would 
suffer from the demon on account of this work. He 

*Vie de la Soeur Marie de Sainte-Famille , 1879, p. 97. 


118 LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 

would annihilate it, if he could, but as our Lord 
made known to me, his efforts are vain.” * 

It was on the Feast of St. Michael Sister Saint- 
Pierre was inspired with the little exercise of Rep¬ 
aration she mentions. It began wit-h the Magnifi¬ 
cat ;. then followed twenty-four versicles or aspira¬ 
tions, of which these are the first : In union with 
the Sacred Heart of Jesus, come let us adore the 
Adorable Name of God, which is above all names. 
In union with the holy Heart of Mary, come let us 
adore the Adorable Name ... In union with the 
glorious St. Joseph, come let us adore . . . etc. 

. . . And at the last Invitatory was added : 
“ Come, let us adore the Admirable Name of God, 
which is above all names, let us prostrate ourselves 
before Him . . . Let us weep in the presence of 
the Lord, who has created us, for He is the Lord 
our God; we are His people and the lambs that He 
leads in His pasture.” Though these prayers had 
nothing in themselves, but what was truly conform¬ 
able to the spirit of the Church, yet after examin¬ 
ing them, the Mother Prioress did not at first per¬ 
mit her daughter to recite them, but kept herself 
the original copy, which had been handed her, in¬ 
tending if needs be, to return it later. Meanwhile, 
she adroitly took care to restrain a zeal whose 
eagerness seemed to her astonishing,—and which, in 
her eyes, might possibly be excited by self-will. 
“But,” says the good Sister, “as I am convinced 
my Superiors acted in accordance with God’s espe¬ 
cial guidance, I submitted to their orders, and did 


* Document B, Letter 111. 


THE GOLDEN ARROW. 


119 


all in my power to obey. Our Lord, if I may thus 
express myself, made a break iu the wall of obedi¬ 
ence that I set against Him, and came into my 
heart to speak of His work, or rather drew me to 
Him. One day, when I went to our Reverend 
Mother to give her an account of my interior dis-' 
positions, I told her that in my prayer, I found my¬ 
self strongly attracted, and entirely occupied in 
repairing the outrages offered God by blasphemers ; 
she reproved me severely, and forbade my continu¬ 
ing it, enjoining me to apply myself simply in medi¬ 
tating on my last end, or on some such subject. She 
reproached me for wanting to make reparation for 
others, when perhaps I myself had blasphemed God 
in my heart. ‘ And would you not do better/ said 
she, Go meditate on these words, which may one 
day be said to you : “ Go ye accursed into everlasting 
fire”?’” 

The poor Sister returned with a very heavy 
heart. “ Seeing,” writes she, “ that our good 
Mother seemed so displeased with me, I went to 
acquaint our Lord with my sorrows, for I found 
myself much perplexed to resist the attraction He 
gave me and change my method of prayer, whilst 
on the other hand, I had great fear of failing in obe¬ 
dience. This is why I acquitted myself the best I 
could of the meditation which had been indicated to 
me; then I gave an account of it to our Mother, 
and when she told me, that I had faithfully ful¬ 
filled her intention, peace returned to my soul. One 
day, our Lord made me understand, that I must 
obey my Superiors, in preference to what I believed 
direct communications from Himself ; therefore, 


120 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


with the help of grace, I have always submitted to 
their wise counsels.” 

Nevertheless, the humble nun endured great suf¬ 
ferings in her soul. She found relief nowhere, 
neither from her confessor nor her Superiors, 
“Who, in their wisdom,” says she, “willed to try 
my spirit, to assure themselves whether these things 
were the work of God. 

“ Ah ! it was then I felt the weight of that cross, 
which before my entrance in Carmel, our Lord had 
promised to give me in Religion, when I had made 
my Vows.” She, in fact, was beginning to carry 
it, and we shall see that she was never separated 
from it, until her last sigh. Let us listen to the 
account of her demeanor towards her Superioress. 
“ When our Lord communicated something to me 
regarding His Work, I dared not speak of it to our 
good Mother, but I wrote it, and took it to her 
office. I was much relieved when I did not find 
her there. Once I even stood trembling before the 
Blessed Sacrament, holding my letter in my hand, 
so as to presen4 it to our Lord, ere delivering it to 
my Superior. Sometimes, the Work of Reparation 
was like a devouring fire within me ; I felt almost 
constrained to mention it to some one, who perhaps 
might be excited to an interest in it, but I was not 
permitted to do so. 

“ At last, however, our Lord granted me a great 
consolation. I was one day at the feet of our Rev¬ 
erend Mother, rendering her an account of my 
interior sufferings occasioned by this Work with 
which I had been charged. The good Mother was 
saying to me: ( What do you want, my daughter ? 


THE GOLDEN ARROW. 


121 


I can do nothing; you* must bring- forth this Work 
in anguish/ All at once, by one of those Provi¬ 
dential coincidences so striking as to surprise us, 
there falls from a book she held in her hands a small 
printed sheet, whereon one read : 4 An Act of Repa¬ 
ration to the Most Holy Name of God/ followed by 
‘ A Warning to the French People/ to appease the 
wrath of God, irritated by blasphemy. This ‘Act 
of Reparation ’ had a striking similarity to the com¬ 
munications I received, and which at that time 
seemed a chimera of my imagination. The Rev¬ 
erend Mother was greatly astonished ; she had had 
no previous knowledge of the existence of this 
printed prayer ; no one knew it was in the convent ; 
the book in which it had been found had probably 
not been out of the library for twenty years, and it 
was in my presence that the incident occurred. I was 
filled with joy, and could not help recognizing that 
Heaven was at last beginning to speak in my favor.” * 
The printed sheet in question had been published in 
1819 by Rev. Father Soyer, then Vicar-General of 
Poitiers, afterwards Bishop of Luçon. To its first 
title, 44 A Warning to the French People,” was added 
a second, styled U A Reparation to Appease the Wrath 
of God.” The formula openly proclaiming that the 
crime of blasphemy drew down God’s anger upon 
France, contained supplications similar to those with 
which Sister Marie de Saint-Pierre had been inspired. 
“ In her surprise,” continues she, 44 our good Mother 
said smilingly to me, 4 Sister, if I did not know you, 
I would take you for a sorceress/ I answered, 

* Manuscript Life, p. 65. Document A, p. 69. 

11 


122 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


‘ Mother, it is the holy Angels who have placed this 
in your hands/ In fact, I remembered having 
invoked them before entering our Mother’s cell, and 
doubtless they had assisted me by causing this book 
to be taken from the library at an opportune time.” 

The Mother Prioress pushed her inquiries farther ; 
she wrote to Mgr. Soyer, who was then still living, 
and asked him to give her what information he 
could on the subject. The Prelate answered that it 
was he who had published this “ Warning,” at the 
request of a Carmelite of Poitiers, named Sister 
Adelaide, a chosen soul to whom our Lord had 
manifested Himself. “ This admirable Carmelite,” 
said he, “ was the holiest person I ever knew, the 
most mortified, the most humble; for the edification 
of your Order her life ought to be written.” 

Now Mother Adelaide had just died on the 31st 
of July of that same year, 1843,* and it was twenty- 
six days after her death that Sister Saint-Pierre, like¬ 
wise a Carmelite nun, was inspired to request a Work 
of Reparation for Blasphemy, as though God had 
waited for the death of one of His prophets to raise 
up another. Uno déficiente haud deficit alter : “ one 
wanting, another succeeds.” f This date of August 
26th is also remarkable for another coincidence, 
which we give in the Sister’s own words : “ A very 
pious gentleman,” says she, “ had interested several 
religious Communities of Tours in reciting a prayer 
which he gave them, the object of which was to 
glorify the Holy Name of God, and obtain, through 


* Document A, p. 69.' Manuscript Life, p. 65. 
t Words of M. Dupont. See his unabridged Life, p. 143. 


THE GOLDEN ARROW. 


123 


the intercession of St. Louis, King of France, the 
extirpation of the enemies of that Divine Name. 
This ‘ union of prayer’ ended on the Saint’s Feast ; 
and what appears so striking in the admirable ways 
of Providence in this connection, is the fact that 
though this devotion had been participated in by all 
the religious Communities of the city, as we learned 
later, the Carmelites had never heard of it, and on 
the morrow after its termination, the Lord commu¬ 
nicated to the most unworthy of His servants, the 
fruits of these holy souls’ prayers.” * 

The “very pious gentleman” to whom Sister 
Saint-Pierre here refers, is no other than M. Dupont, 
“the holy man of Tours.” He was already ac¬ 
quainted with this Carmel, and the circumstance just 
mentioned is yet more closely to cement the friend¬ 
ship. For a long time this fervent Christian had 
exercised great zeal for the reparation of blasphemy, 
and consequently, having especial devotion to St. 
Louis, King of France, he had, as the Sister tells 
us, been delightfully surprised at receiving a formula 
of prayers entitled, “ The Forty Days of St. Louis.” It 
came to Tours through the post-office, in the begin¬ 
ning of July, 1843, no one knew whence. Madame 
Deshayes', a Lady of the Sacred Heart, who with the 
venerable Madame Barat was regarded as one of the 
three founders of that Institute, had been the first to 
receive thus from some unknown source about thirty 
copies, one of which being given to M. Dupont, he 
had hastened to have it reprinted for circulation 
among the faithful. The object of this prayer, as 


* Document A, p. 70. 


124 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


we have said, was to glorify the Holy Name of God, 
and olfer reparation for blasphemy. On the printed 
sheets distributed to the faithful, we read these words 
among others : “ Union of prayers from the 16th of 
July until the 25th of August, inclusive, for the 
needs of the Church and State. . . . May Thy 
Name, O Lord, be known and blessed in all times, 
and all places ! . . . ” During forty days this for¬ 
mula of prayers had been recited in all the Commu¬ 
nities of the city, bat, astonishing thing, notwith¬ 
standing the friendship existing between M. Dupont 
and the Carmelites, as well as the peculiar circum¬ 
stance of “the Forty Fays” seeming to be placed 
under the protection of our Lady of Mt. Carmel, the 
Mother Prioress and her daughters, as the Sister 
remarks, had absolutely heard nothing about it. 
Now it was on the 26th of August, the day after the 
Feast of St. Louis, when this “ union of prayers 
ended,” that in Carmel’s cloister occurred the super¬ 
natural event we have related. We can but be 
greatly impressed with the connection as well as the 
similarity between these words of the Forty Days’ 
Prayer : “ May Thy Name he known , blessed , . . .” 
etc., and those of the “ Golden Arrow,” with which 
Sister Saint-Pierre was inspired that véry day : 
“May the most holy, most sacred, most adorable 
Name of God be ever praised, blessed,” etc. M. 
Dupont attached especial importance to this coinci¬ 
dence, as he was at the time actively and earnestly 
employed in exciting reparation for blasphemy. 
Very naturally he came to the conclusion, that the 
prayers made in 1843 by so many fervent Christians 
were about to bear fruit. “ Though Faith does not 


THE GOLDEN ARROW. 


125 


declare it,” says he, “ we are, at least, permitted to 
think that such has been the case, conformably to 
our Lord’s promise that, ‘when two or three are 
gathered together in My Name , there I am in the 
midst of them.’” 

“It was not,” observes he, “until a year after 
the revelations made to the holy Sister, that we rec¬ 
ognized the very mysterious coincidence, existing 
between the aspirations of the Forty Days’ Prayer, 
and the invocation inspired by our Lord, as though 
Heaven had heard the cry from earth, and the Work 
of Reparation was brought forth ! ” * 

This year seems, in the designs of Providence, to 
have been predestined for the Work. It was on the 
8th of August, 1843, that His Holiness, Pope 
Gregory XVI, gave a Brief for the establishment 
of a pious Confraternity under the patronage of St. 
Louis, King of France, the object of which was the 
Reparation of blasphemy against the Holy Name of 
God. Elsewhere, we find that at the same period, 
a Reverend Jesuit Father, who had been unsuccess¬ 
fully laboring to evangelize a rural parish in the 
diocese of Nantes strangely addicted to blasphemy, 
was rewarded by an abundant spiritual harvest after 
the Bishop had given his approval to an Associa¬ 
tion in Reparation for blasphemy, to which Asso¬ 
ciation was attached an Indulgence of forty days. 

This extraordinary concatenation of circumstances 
so closely linked around the Work of the Repara¬ 
tion, determined her Superiors to relax their severity 
towards Marie de Saint-Pierre. 

* Life of M. Dupont, b. 1, p. 144. 

11 * 


126 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT—PIEKEE. 


“ I was permitted,” says she, “ to occupy myself 
with the Work of God according to the inspirations 
our Lord would give me; our Reverend Mother 
having returned the prayers of Reparation, I was 
filled with joy, and every day I recited them most 
fervently. The good Master made known to me 
that they were very agreeaRle to Him. In a little 
while, He told me, I must ask my Superiors to 
have them printed,—a new source of trouble for 
me, for our wise and prudent Mother, seeing that 
our Lord continued His communications with me 
in regard to this Work, wished to build it on a solid 
foundation, and still tried me, the better to ascer¬ 
tain it were indeed the spirit of God which led me. 

“One day she told me that I appeared to her 
another Pierre Michel. This was a visionary who 
had deceived numbers of persons by his pretendea 
revelations ; he came to see our Reverend Mother, 
but she read his character, and at once detected the 
spirit which animated him. In fact, this man was 
afterwards arrested, proved to be an impostor, and 
condemned to several years’ imprisonment. 

“ Beholding myself placed on a level with that 
individual, I knew not what to think of my com¬ 
munications, but our Lord encouraged me, saying : 
‘As long as you are obedient and humble, rest 
assured you will not fall into illusion.’ 

“ Soon after this our Reverend Mother fell very 
sick ; though she often reproved me, it was for the 
good of my soul, and to make sure of the Work of 
God, hence, notwithstanding, I loved her very much, 
and had great confidence in her. One day, during 
my prayer, on the evening of the Feast of St. 


THE GOLDEN ARROW. 


127 


Michael, our Lord made me understand that my 
little acts of reparation were very pleasing to His 
Divine Heart, and caused Him to forget my faults; 
also, that if the Community wished to obtain such 
improvement in our Reverend Mother’s health as 
would enable her, at least, to assume her duties, 
they must make a No vena of Reparation before the 
Blessed Sacrament in atonement for blasphemies 
uttered against the Holy Name of God, saying the 
prayers of the little exercise with which He had 
inspired me; for it was just and proper children 
should assist their Mother,— finally, that if this 
satisfaction were offered His Heart, He would open 
it, and pour out abundant graces on the Commu¬ 
nity. I could not refuse to deliver this message of 
our Lord, who added as an inducement : ‘ Oh ! if you 
knew what I have done for you, and how much I 
have cared for your soul, you would be astonished in 
beholding such abasement of the Creator towards 
His creature!’ Then I said: ‘Ah ! Lord, I will 
again pledge myself for Thee, for I risk nothing 
except receiving humiliations, and Thou wilt be 
glorified by this No vena.’ Therefore, placing my¬ 
self under the protection of the Blessed Virgin, I 
went to impart my communication to our Reverend 
Mother, who, on that day, was suffering most acute 
pain. She consented to make the Novena, but in 
order to prevent the Sisters knowing or suspecting 
even that I was in any way connected with the com¬ 
position of these prayers, our confessor had the 
kindness to copy them, and it was believed we were 
indebted to him for the introduction of the new 
devotion. 


128 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


u For my part, I have never repented of engaging 
in this service of honoring the Name of our Lord, who 
never allows Himself to be outdone in generosity. On 
that same day, which was the Feast of St. Michael, 
the Divine Master declared to me it was His will 
that our Mother should circulate these prayers of 
Reparation ; and He promised me, as a pledge of 
my mission, the improvement of her health. He 
assured me also, that this devotion contained nothing 
contrary to the spirit of the Church ; for what is 
the Church doing, if not continually glorifying the 
Holy Name of God ? I promised Him, that if He 
cured our Reverend Mother, she would not be 
unmindful of this work ; and when she began to im¬ 
prove, I said to Him : ‘ Henceforth, I will not hesi¬ 
tate to perform Thy errands and carry Thy mes¬ 
sages/ 9> The Celestial Spouse, faithful to'His word, 
restored the health of the beloved Reverend Mother, 
who soon after was able to fulfil the, then so extra¬ 
ordinarily important, functions of her office. 


CHAPTER VIII. 


THE REPARATION. 

11 Thou hast offered thyself to Me for the accomplishment of My 
designs ; this offering has won My Heart.” ( Our Lord’s words 
to the Sister.) 

In order to be enlightened concerning the first com¬ 
munications of her youthful Professed, the Mother 
Prioress had already consulted a man of God well 
versed in the spiritual life, the Reverend Father 
Vieillecases, Religious of Picpus, and Director of 
the higher Ecclesiastical Seminary of Tours. Now 
that the communications were becoming more seri¬ 
ous, revealing a practical end destined to be di¬ 
vulged, she felt the necessity of conferring in an 
especial manner with the Sister’s confessor, that she 
might thus follow up with more security these 
divine manifestations. No one else, however, even 
in the convent, had the least knowledge of all this, 
and until after the death of the servant of God, 
only such persons as were absolutely necessary, 
either for the examination of these celestial com¬ 
munications, or the putting into execution of the 
inspired work, were cognizant of them. 

The two priests called by Providence to direct 
the conscience of Sister Saint-Pierre, and note the 

129 


130 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


successive phases of the interior lights received 
during the short space of her religious life, were the 
Reverend Pierre Aileron, Dean of Notre Dame-la- 
Riche, and the Reverend Jean Salmon. We have per¬ 
sonally known both, and can render to their virtue 
the homage it merits. The first named was Superior 
of the Carmelites for twenty-four years ; it was he 
who had received the young Bretonne on her 
entrance into the convent. When the Community 
were forced by circumstances to change their resi¬ 
dence, he took much pains in negotiating the pur¬ 
chase of the site for a new monastery, superintended 
the workmen, and rendered many other important 
services. He died in 1862, bearing with him to the 
grave, the esteem not only of all the clergy who 
beheld in him a model of the ecclesiastical spirit, 
but likewise, the respect and affection of his parishi¬ 
oners, to whom he was a true type of the Good 
Shepherd. Pious, charitable, zealous, of great self- 
abnegation, and perfect disinterestedness, he brought 
to the exercise of the holy ministry as much deli¬ 
cacy of conscience as rigorous exactitude. His great 
uprightness, solid judgment and practical turn of 
mind, made him a truly wise and prudent director. 
In all that he decided or undertook, he proceeded 
deliberately, calmly and prudently. Simple and 
modest, somewhat timid naturally, though very 
firm in his convictions when once settled, he was 
not much inclined towards the mystical and extra¬ 
ordinary, but, on the contrary, rather distrustful of 
them, following in preference himself, and directing 
others to follow the ordinary paths of perfection. 
With such dispositions, we are not astonished that 


THE REPARATION. 


131 


Sister Marie de Saint-Pierre’s supernatural com¬ 
munications, with which he was thoroughly ac¬ 
quainted by reason of his position, should have 
been received by him with so little favor, that he 
even made them the subject of jest, before her and 
the Mother Prioress, as if they were of no impor¬ 
tance whatever. But observing with an attentive 
and discriminating eye the operations of grace in 
this chosen soul, he was at length led to recognize 
and admire therein the Divine intervention. So 
strong were his impressions on this point, that he 
was first in the diocese to make efforts for the 
establishment in his parish of this Work of the 
Reparation, demanded by the pious Carmelite ; and 
he was much grieved at being refused the necessary 
permission of the ecclesiastical authorities, for carry¬ 
ing out, in its full extent, this salutary project. 

We shall conclude this excellent priest’s eulogy, 
by adding that he was a sincere admirer of M. 
Dupont, with whom parochial charitable works 
often brought him in contact, and whom he some¬ 
times had occasion to meet, either at the Carmelite 
convent, or the monastery of the Refuge near the 
presbytery. At the time of the Foundation of the 
Little Sisters of the Poor in Tours, it was he who 
assisted M. Dupont in furnishing their first House, 
that in the Parish of Notre Dame-la-Riche where 
they still dwell. This good priest died on the 16th 
of August, the day after the Feast of the Assump¬ 
tion ; by his will he bequeathed to “ Notre Dame,” 
all the fruits of his savings. His charity had 
rendered him very popular ; and the municipality, 
desirous of honoring his memory, gave his name to 


132 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


one of the streets of the La-Riche district. To him 
also, is due the merit of haying begun, and in great 
part completed, at his own expense, those costly and 
tasteful architectural additions to the parish church, 
which make it one of the most interesting religious 
monuments of our city. 

He was very intimate with the Reverend Jean Sal¬ 
mon, who haying been his Vicar at his first parish of 
Saint-Pierre-des-Corps, obtained permission to follow 
him to Notre Dame-la-Riche. In 1839, the Rev. 
Jean Salmon was appointed confessor to the Carmel¬ 
ites, which ministry, so well suited to his austere and 
pious life, he readily accepted, and fulfilled with 
rigorous exactitude for twelve years ; it was thus, he 
became the ordinary confessor of Sister Saint-Pierre. 
From 1844 to 1850, a period of six years, he was 
the regular chaplain of the Community. 

A man of prayer, given to recollection, digni¬ 
fied and sedate, an excellent and solid preacher, 
though of antiquated style, learned, laborious and 
indefatigable, he was eminently gifted with the 
qualities appertaining to his high vocation. M. 
Dupont held him in great esteem, and was accus¬ 
tomed to consult him upon questions of mystical the¬ 
ology and Holy Writ. It was at his request, Father 
Salmon wrote and published the pamphlet of the 
Association in Reparation of Blasphemy, which 
appeared under the auspices of Mgr. Morlot. 

Having a taste for study and the regularity of the 
religious life, this good priest was very assiduous in 
the employment of his time. He was the first 
ecclesiastic in Tours to use the Roman Breviary, and 
long before it was of archiépiscopal prescript, 


THE .REPARATION. 


133 


hoping thereby to be of greater assistance to the 
Carmelites, who are enjoined by their Rule to recite 
it daily. 

He made no attempt at concealing the satisfaction 
this afforded him, and which he was pleased to relish 
at his leisure, which prompted the Rev. Pierre 
Aileron, when speaking of him, to say, jestingly : 
“ This good abbé, so avaricious of his time, would 
willingly pass the day with his Roman Breviary and 
his Carmelites ! ” He, indeed, loved the Carmelites 
with the same love he gave to the Church and 
prayer, and his duty as confessor to them was ful¬ 
filled with unbounded zeal and devotion. Unfortu¬ 
nately, he had a timorous conscience verging on scrup¬ 
ulosity, which caused him to see the influence of the 
demon in matters perfectly innocent. His direction 
in the Sacred Tribunal was consequently affected by 
it, whilst a notable deafness, increasing with age, 
rendered this ministry painful and fatiguing to him, 
and likewise added to his doubts and indecision. 
For a long time he was in great uncertainty concern¬ 
ing the divine communications of his penitent ; to 
him they seemed the effect of the imagination, and, 
at times, his scrupulous turn of mind made him fear 
that they were a snare of Satan. But soon, recog¬ 
nizing by unequivocal signs the divine operations in 
this pure and humble soul, he thenceforth aided her 
to the best of his ability, and warmly defended her 
cause whenever it was necessary. To his great 
regret, a serious attack of apoplexy forced him to 
resign the almonry of the Carmelites. He then 
went to reside with his intimate friend, the Rev» 
M. Verdier, at the Orphanage, of which institution 
12 


134 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


lie was already the benefactor, and to which he after¬ 
wards bequeathed their present house. He ended his 
days at Langeais in the midst of his virtuous and 
worthy relatives. In 1848, a short time after the death 
of Sister Saint-Pierre, Mgr. Morlot, appreciating the 
virtues and services of this worthy almoner, named 
him honorary Canon of the Metropolitan Church. 

Such were the two austere.and holy ecclesiastics, 
with whom the Mother Prioress successively con¬ 
ferred for guidance concerning the communications 
received from her spiritual daughter. It was now 
not only necessary to come to some decision, but 
even more so to act; and the common responsibility 
became greater in proportion as the work demanded 
was to be wide-spread and unlimited in extent. 
Moreover, the communications were assuming a defi¬ 
nite form and were of frequent recurrence. To 
make Himself understood by His servant, our Lord 
either “ gathered in His Sacred Heart,” as she ex¬ 
presses it, “ the powers of her soul,” or seemed to 
come and reside in her own heart, and there reveal to 
her His intentions. In both ways did there seem to be 
established a perfect union; our Saviour’s Will, His 
sentiments, His desires of glorifying His Father, of 
repairing the outrages offered the Divine Majesty, 
and of saving souls, becoming identical with those 
of the chosen soul He so profoundly penetrated. 
This transition which the Sister underwent, without 
well understanding it herself, was not easy to explain 
through the medium of human language. Poor 
little Bretonne! having, as we know, but scant edu¬ 
cation, possessing none of those literary resources 
which study affords mystical writers, when, to satisfy 


THE [REPARATION. 


135 


obedience, she must take the pen and express in 
writing her supernatural impressions, the necessary 
words and images were wanting, or failed to convey 
what was in her mind. This perplexity became 
greater when the celestial communications no longer 
regarded the sweet and touching mysteries of the 
Holy Infancy, but the arduous and complicated 
work of the Reparation for Blasphemy. From the 
very beginning, and in a sort of preface to her 
narration, the pious Carmelite naively complains of 
this : alleging her want of capacity, and the diffi¬ 
culty she finds in expressing what she has seen, heard, 
or understood. She begs that indulgence be granted 
to her crude and illiterate style, and that one will 
not keep too much to the letter, *but will ponder the 
meaning and essence of things,—she is convinced, 
moreover, she declares, that the Holy Ghost will 
enlighten her worthy Superiors to discern what comes 
from Him, Who is Truth, and what may come from 
herself, who is only darkness and nothingness ! * 

In response to the questions which were more than 
once addressed her on this subject, she always 
declared that these communications were not “ visions ” 
or “ apparitions ” ; that she saw not under exterior 
forms or sensible images the truths revealed to her, 
and did not physically hear the words she was com¬ 
missioned to relate. All took place in the interior 
part of her soul, which pre-supposes that the Lord 
had already raised her to a very high degree of union 
with Him, and favored her with the most sublime 
kind of contemplation, that entirely disengaged from 


* Document A, p. 2. 


136 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


the senses. We must take, note of this, for it is of 
great importance, and later we shall have occasion 
to recur to it. For the present, we resume the main 
thread of our subject and say, that far from being 
surprised or shocked at any inaccuracy of language 
in our Carmelite’s narration, let us rather marvel at 
the exactitude, the wonderful clearness with which 
she discourses upon matters at which the most learned 
are awed and hesitate. 

Here is an example. On the 3d of November, 
the “First Friday” of the month, a day on which 
the Blessed Sacrament was exposed and two of the 
nuns received Holy Communion for the accomplish¬ 
ment of the designs of the Sacred Heart, in fulfil¬ 
ment of a vow made by the Prioress, our Divine 
Saviour revealed to the Sister that “ this was the 
Community He desired should make known and 
spread the Work of the Reparation.” “ Since,” said 
He, “the Community desires and prays for the ful¬ 
filment of the designs of My Heart , it is only just 
that it should have the honor of giving birth to this 
new devotion.” 

“Then,” says the Sister, “ something very extra¬ 
ordinary took place in my interior. My soul was 
in the Heart of Jesus as in a fiery furnace; it 
seemed to me that for some instants it was absent 
from my miserable body, in order to be re-united to 
its God ; it found itself delightfully lost, annihilated 
in Him, and vividly conscious that He was its prin¬ 
ciple and blessed end. I could no longer act, I was 
able only to say interiorly, ‘ My God, how admir¬ 
able are Thy works, Thou art not a hidden God ! 9 
Willingly would I have added; ‘Lord, how good it 


THE REPARATION. 


137 


is to be here ! Let us raise three tabernacles to hold 
captive the three powers of my soul ! * This was 
during Mass; and after the happiness of receiving 
Holy Communion, I took the liberty of saying, < My 
Lord, now that I am nearer Thee, if Thou wouldst 
only repeat what Thou didst say to me at the begin¬ 
ning of the Holy Sacrifice ? 9 But I felt that such 
was not His Will at this moment, and I united my¬ 
self to what He was operating in me by that anni¬ 
hilation of which I have spoken. 

“ After a few moments, He seemed to declare to me 
that He had kept silent to admonish me, that it was 
not in my power to hear this interior voice when¬ 
ever I wished. Having given me this little lesson, 
our Lord continued : ‘ My daughter, in putting obsta¬ 
cles to My designs over your soul you have offended 
Me more, grieved My Heart more than all your Sisters 
together ; now, try to surpass them all in love and 
zeal for the interests of My glory. It is not to dis¬ 
turb you that I remind you of your sins; have 
confidence, I will forget them all. Here are the two 
reasons why I wish to make use of you : first because 
you are the most miserable; secondly, because you 
have offered yourself to Me for the accomplishment 
of My designs; this offering has won My Heart. 
Be humble and simple ; make known your miseries, 
for this will promote My glory.* 99 * 

Shortly after this, the mission of the Carmel of 
Tours was clearly indicated ; the young virgin writes 
thus to the Mother Prioress : “ The Divine Master 
has told me to ask you, if you are willing to snatch 


* Document B, letter IV., p. 19. 
12 * 


138 LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 

the sword from His Hands, for the Spouses have 
full power over the Heart of the Bridegroom. He 
desires you to have the community make a No vena 
of Reparation for blasphemy. If He chooses this 
asylum to exhale His sighs, it is to receive from 
you consolations. It seemed to me I read in His 
Heart, that He ardently desired the establishment of 
this Work, in order to grant mercy.” 

The manner in which the Community should assist 
in spreading the Work of the Reparation, was by 
having printed the prayers composed for this end. 
Sister Saint-Pierre’s entreaties were urgent: “Our 
Lord desires this Community to defray the expenses 
of the printing, in return for which He will load it 
with benedictions, and restore a hundred fold the 
amount expended. I can no longer carry this 
heavy burden ; with confidence, I deposit it in your 
arms, my Reverend Mother, and I very humbly 
beseech you to examine the affair before God, for I 
believe it is His Will you should render Him this 
service. As far as I am concerned, my mission is 
accomplished, and my soul relieved.” * But the 
fulfilment of this request presented grave difficul¬ 
ties, both as regards the ecclesiastical authorities, on 
the one side, and the public, on the other. These 
reasons, coupled with the necessity of studying yet 
more carefully the spirit which animated her 
daughter, prevented the Mother Prioress from tak¬ 
ing any immediate steps towards granting the neces¬ 
sary permissions. 

“ Our Reverend Mother,” says the Sister, “ per¬ 
ceiving in me too great eagerness, and too lively a 


* Document B, p. 16. 


THE REPARATION. 


139 


desire to propagate the Reparation due the Holy 
Name of God, made me understand how proud I 
was, to ask, that prayers peculiar to this Work be 
printed and distributed, whilst there were so many 
other beautiful prayers composed by the holy 
Fathers; and forbidding me to occupy myself with 
it any longer, she had the kindness to impose a 
penance on me for the expiation of my sins. Dur¬ 
ing this very charitable correction, and a second one 
received at Chapter, I do not know, thanks be to 
God who took pity on His little servant, what came 
over my wicked nature, which is so proud, for all 
the compliments in the world could not have pro¬ 
cured me the interior joy I then experienced. 1 
endeavored to enter into the sentiments proposed by 
the charity of our good Mother, I humbled myself 
before our Lord, and in order to be very obedient, 
I offered Him the sacrifice of ceasing to solicit the 
establishment of this devotion or of occupying my¬ 
self any longer with it.” However, she observes, 
that it was not forbidden her to practice interiorly, 
acts of Reparation and this she believed it her duty 
to do. u Our Lord,” says she, “ always attracted 
me towards compassionating the sorrows of His 
Heart; for if this Divine Saviour can experience 
bitterness of soul, He must indeed be sorrowful 
unto death in beholding mankind, ever blasphem¬ 
ing His Holy Name and thus uniting themselves to 
Lucifer and the reprobates, instead of to Himself 
which would supply their deficiencies and enable 
them to love and glorify His Heavenly Father. 
Oh ! how our Lord would be consoled, if some of 
His faithful and grateful children would unite 


140 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


themselves with Him in the Sacrament of the 
Altar, and with the holy Angels, in loving and 
blessing the Name of that Father He so tenderly 
loves ! It is in these sentiments I offer up my little 
especial devotions to the Holy Name of God, always 
uniting myself to the Heart of Jesus, and the 
Angels and Saints, finding in this holy company a 
rich supplement to my own unworthiness. Then 
through the hands of Mary and Joseph, I place 
these devotions in the Sacred Heart, praying our 
adorable Saviour to multiply them millions of times, 
by the same power by which He multiplied the 
loaves in the desert.” 

Once launched in the way of her cherished “ little 
devotions,” the good Sister scarcely knows when to 
stop. “For the same end,” says she, “our Lord 
has inspired me to make a crown or chaplet com¬ 
posed of these prayers of Reparation. One day 
during Holy Mass, the Divine Master gathered, the 
powers of my soul within His Heart, and it seemed 
to me that I saw Him presenting me this chaplet 
which appeared to be of fine gold, enriched with 
precious stones. But deeming myself very un¬ 
worthy of possessing such a treasure, and fearing to 
be assailed by robbers, that is, the demons, I prayed 
the most Blessed Virgin to keep it for me in 
her Immaculate Heart, and I have asked our 
Lord to attach Indulgences to the recitation of 
it. I believe this crown is very agreeable to 
Him, and hence, equally repugnant to Satan. I 
do not place any faith in dreams, but since I have 
begun to practice these devotions to the Holy Name 
of God, and pray for the conversion of blasphemers, 


THE REPARATION. 


141 


twice have I seen in dreams, the demons, under the 
figure of furious animals, ready to devour me ; and 
I save myself from their teeth only by invoking 
our Lord and the most Blessed Virgin. Perhaps 
some prey has escaped their grasp through that 
Novena of Reparation made by the Community. 
One day at prayer, the good Master warned me of 
Satan’s rage at this devotion ; but He also made me 
hear these words : ‘ I give you My Name, to be 
your light in darkness, and your strength in com¬ 
bats. Satan will use every effort to stifle this Work 
at its birth ; but the most Holy Name will triumph, 
and the holy Angels gain the victory.’ ” 

Within the enclosure was a statue of Our Lady 
of Prompt Succor, greatly venerated by the Com¬ 
munity. Being troubled as to the future of the Work 
with which she was now forbidden to occupy herself 
any longer, our young Carmelite confided her grief 
to this good Mother. “ I wrote a little letter and 
placed it in the hands of the Blessed Virgin, since 
which time my soul has become calm, and I have 
tried hard to be very obedient to our Reverend 
Mother.” 

Who was this Virgin of “Prompt Succor” so 
opportunely and efficaciously invoked by Marie de 
Saint-Pierre? As our readers may be curious to 
know something of her history, we quote it literally 
from the Annals of the Carmelite monastery : 

“In 1692, there was blessed in our monastery a 
statue of the Blessed Virgin, which is invoked by 
our Sisters under the title of “ Our Lady of Prompt 
Succor,” and regarded by them as miraculous. The 
following is its history : 


142 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


“ It is not known at what period after our Foun¬ 
dation at Tours, that a block of hard stone represent¬ 
ing the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin, reposing 
as on the cloud which carried her into Heaven, was 
put away in the garret of the house. The base was 
completely dilapidated, the statue in nearly the same 
condition, and the whole mass so heavy that several 
men could with great difficulty remove it. A young 
person, very desirous of consecrating herself to God 
in Carmel, asked and obtained the favor of being 
admitted. After some time, her Superiors, seeing 
the extreme difficulty she had in reading Latin, 
decided to send her away as incapable of fulfilling 
the principal duty of a Carmelite, that of reciting 
or chanting the Divine Office in Choir. The dis¬ 
consolate novice begged the Mother Prioress to take 
into consideration her good will, assuring her that 
the Blessed Virgin, who had procured her admission 
to Carmel, would also teach her to read Latin. At 
this the Mother Prioress laughingly told her (and, 
perhaps, to put an end to her entreaties) to give a 
proof of her desires and confidence, by bringing from 
the garret the statue and block of stone. Full of 
faith and hope, the novice went thither immediately. 
What was the astonishment of the Community when 
they beheld her returning with the enormous mass 
in her arms ! There was no longer any doubt as to 
the Will of God concerning her vocation ; and, in 
fact, she soon learned to read Latin marvellously well. 
In gratitude to her Benefactress, she asked that the 
money destined to purchase her habits for Profession 
be used in having the statue repaired, and she be 
given habits already worn, which was done. 


THE REPARATION. 


143 


“ The statue was detached from the block of stone, 
carefully repaired, solemnly blessed, and placed in 
the “ Preparatory ” on Saturday, April 12, 1692. 
During the Revolution, a Sister saved it from 
destruction, and, on the return of our Mother, it was 
replaced in its precious sanctuary, where it became 
an object of especial devotion to one of our venerable 
prelates, who never went thither without invoking 
her with great confidence. 

“ This miraculous statue of Our Lady of Prompt 
Succor,” adds a note, “ was afterwards removed to 
the recreation room, and it was here Marie de Saint- 
Pierre, as we have seen, besought her assistance.” * 

The Mother Prioress had not yet consented to the 
u act of entire abandonment ” requested by her gen¬ 
erous daughter, who hence could indulge only in the 
desire, which was, indeed, very strong, as she 
believed this “act of entire abandonment” was 
what our Lord required of her for the accomplish¬ 
ment of His designs. “ He desired,” says she, “ and 
first asked this donation of myself only a few days 
after my entrance into the monastery. His designs 
were then unknown to me; but He gradually mani¬ 
fested them to my soul by the communication I 
received concerning the Work of the Reparation for 
Blasphemy, and I feel myself interiorly urged to 
make to God the sacrifice of my entire being, and all 
the merits I may acquire in this holy house, wherein 
I have the happiness to dwell.” 

On the 21st of November, Feast of the Presen¬ 
tation of the most Blessed Virgin, at the Renova- 


* Annals, p. 118. 


144 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


tion of Vows which takes place that day in the 
Community, she composed a formula of donation, 
but in vain was it submitted to her Superioress. On 
the 24th of the same month, Feast of St. John of 
the Cross, during the entire Mass, she was spiritually 
occupied in pondering the guiltiness of the world in 
the sight of Divine Majesty. “ I offered my Holy 
Communion,” says she, “ in reparation for the out¬ 
rages of, mankind against God ; this is my habitual 
practice, since our Lord has attracted me to repair 
the blasphemies uttered against the Holy Name of 
God His Father. It affords me great consolation to 
think that Jesus Himself comes into my soul to 
make this reparation, which can be worthily done 
only by His Sacred Heart. Therefore, when I 
receive Him, I begin by giving myself to Him, and 
annihilating myself in His Heart; then, I allow 
this Divine Saviour to fulfil in my soul the office 
of Mediator between God and man. But, at this 
Communion on the Feast of our holy father, St. 
John of the Cross, as soon as Jesus had entered my 
soul, He took possession of all its powers and made 
me hear these words: ‘Until now, I have shown 
you, only in part, the designs of My Heart, but, 
to-day, I will reveal them to you in all their fulness. 
The Earth is covered with crimes , the violation of the 
First Three Commandments of God has irritated My 
Father ; the Holy Name of God blasphemed , and the 
Holy Fay of the Lord profaned fills up the measure 
of iniquities; these sins have risen unto the Throne of 
God and provoked His wrath , which will soon burst 
forth , if His justice be not appeased; at no time have 
these crimes reached such a pitch ! I desire and most 


THE REPARATION. 


145 


ardently, that there he formed, to honor the Name of 
My Father, an Association, properly approved and 
organized .* Your Superiors are right in not wish¬ 
ing to take any steps concerning this devotion but 
such as are well based, for, otherwise, My designs 
would not be fulfilled/ These were the words, as 
near as I can recollect, of the message I must deliver 
to my Superiors, but I was loath to do so, having 
never heard that there existed in the Church any 
Association such as that our Lord had just mentioned 
to me. Then, I said : ‘ Ah ! my God ! if I did but 
know beyond a doubt that it was Thyself who hast 
spoken to me, it would not be so difficult to lay these 
things before my Superiors/ He answered me : Ht 
is for them and not you to make this examination. 
Have I not many times already communicated my¬ 
self to your soul in the same manner as I do now ? 
Be very careful, for if wanting in simplicity, you 
place obstacles to My designs, you will be respon¬ 
sible for the salvation of these souls ; if, on the con¬ 
trary, you are faithful, they will enrich your crown/ 
Our Lord thus made me understand that He intended 
by this Work of Reparation to grant mercy to sinners. 
He said to me, in conclusion : ‘ And to whom 
should I address Myself, if not to a Carmelite, 
whose very vocation enjoins upon her the duty of 
unceasingly glorifying My Name?* 

“ This, my Reverend Mother, is, though imper¬ 
fectly expressed, what I believe I heard from our 
Lord, for my soul was entirely lost in God, and 
overcome by awe. Our Lord, at the same time, 

* Document B, p. 21. 

13 


146 


LIFE OF SISTER SA INT— PIERRE. 


brought to my remembrance His words to Abra¬ 
ham, that He would spare the guilty cities, if there¬ 
in could be found ten just souls; and it seemed to 
me, that for the sake of those who would practice 
this Reparation for blasphemy and for contempt 
shown the Majesty of God, His Justice would be 
appeased, and mercy granted the guilty.” 

The holy Carmelite adds in conclusion of the 
foregoing : “ This is the substance of what our 
Lord has made me understand. I humbly declare, 
my Reverend Mother, that with the grace of God, I 
have spoken to you in the greatest simplicity of 
soul, and I have transmitted to you the words of 
the Divine Master as His little liand-maid. I now 
leave all to your good judgment and the wisdom of 
the Reverend Father Superior. As for myself, my 
duty towards you is fulfilled ; the Holy Ghost who 
enlightens Superiors will make known to you, 
whether it be Himself, who has dictated what I 
have just written. I give it faith only in as much as 
it receives the approbation of my Superiors.” 

Thirteen days later, on the eve of the Feast of the 
Immaculate Conception (December 7), the Divine 
Saviour returns to the same subject, and this time 
the culpable nation is named. 

The Sister begins thus : “ My soul is greatly ter¬ 
rified at what our Lord has just made known to me 
this morning during prayer; He has commanded 
me to transmit it to my Superiors without fear of 
being misled, and I will now do so in all simplicity. 
Our Lord having collected the powers of my soul 
in His Divine Heart, has shown me how greatly 
He is incensed against France, and that He has 


THE REPARATION. 


147 


sworn in His wrath to be avenged, if no Reparation 
be made His celestial Father for all the blasphemies 
of which she is guilty. He has declared to me, that 
He can dwell no longer in this France, which like a 
viper tears the bowels of His mercy. He still 
patiently endures the contempt shown Himself, but 
the outrages against Plis Eternal Father excite His 
wrath; France has sucked the paps of mercy unto 
blood, wherefore justice will now succeed to mercy, 
and His wrath burst forth with greater fury for 
having been the longer delayed. Then intensely 
affrighted, I said : ‘ My Lord, permit me to ask, 
if this Reparation Thou desirest be made, wilt Thou 
yet grant pardon to France?' He answered me: 
( I will pardon her once more, but mark well,— 
once ! As this crime of blasphemy extends over the 
whole kingdom, and as it is public, so also, must the 
Reparation be public, and extended to all her cities ; 
woe to those who will not make this Reparation ! ’ ” 

At the end of this narration the Sister observes, 
that on awakening in the morning her mind was 
not at all occupied with these thoughts, that at 
prayer she had interiorly felt Jesus drawing her 
within His Heart, and it was there He had made 
Plimself heard. 

“ I abandon,” says she, “ all these things to your 
wisdom, my Reverend Mother. I am only a child, 
who can do nothing, and who has no other conso¬ 
lation save reliance on the judgment of its Supe¬ 
riors.” 

After receiving this communication, Sister Saint- 
Pierre, as we learn from the testimony of another 
Carmelite, came from the choir in a state of distress 


148 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


difficult to describe; she was pale as death, and 
bathed in tears ; her countenance had lost its usual 
cheerful expression, and bore an imprint of suffer¬ 
ing which lasted for a long time, and was always 
renewed when she received similar revelations. On 
such occasions, she seemed as though annihilated 
beneath the weight of the Divine anger. 

We can easily understand the “ terror ” and that 
expression of distress depicted upon the features of 
the pious virgin of Carmel. Poor France! Our 
Lord designates her as the most guilty of all nations ! 
Bewailing her crimes, her blasphemies, • He likens 
her to a “ viper that tears the bowels of His mercy ” ; 
He threatens to cease dwelling in her midst, if she 
hasten not to repair by voluntary expiation the odious 
sin with which she is burdened; she has “sucked 
unto blood the paps of His mercy”; Justice is at 
hand to strike! What French heart could hear 
unmoved, warnings so severe, so solemn? The 
reproach, alas ! is but too well merited, evidences of 
the crime being universal and undeniable. Every¬ 
where and incessantly do we hear uttered with 
impunity, that blasphemy our Lord designated to His 
servant as a monstrous sin, by which He feels Him¬ 
self “ cursed, insulted to His Face, wounded as if by 
a poisoned arrow.” To the coarse blasphemy of the 
unrefined is added the doctrinal blasphemy of the 
free-thinker. From the streets and public places it 
has crossed the threshold of the parlor,—found its 
way into the schools, and even polluted the domestic 
hearth; it sits enthroned within the theatres and 
other public resorts ; it proudly flaunts itself in ora¬ 
tions, books and pamphlets, as also, in that multi- 


THE REPARATION. 


149 


tude of sheet and periodical literature, with which 
we are daily inundated. It borrows every manner of 
style, and assumes every form, but oftenest that of badi¬ 
nage, and its mocking laugh, so befitting the gaiety 
of the French character. In turn, it is philosophical 
or coarse, but under whatsoever varied shade, always 
powerful,—swaying, with magnetic influence, the 
giddy masses. This outrage, directed first against 
the highest and most worthy dignitaries of the 
Church, then to its dogmatic teachings and the 
existence of Christianity, ere long would dare attack 
God Himself, denying His nature, His rights, His 
being ! Behold the crime that “ fills to the brim the 
measure of iniquities, and makes it rise even unto 
Heaven ! ” 

France is here designated “as the most guilty” 
among all nations, because she is the one most highly 
favored by Heaven, the most loved of Christ, the 
eldest daughter of the Church. 

Blasphemy, rife within her borders, wrests from 
her grasp the sceptre of that providential character 
she held among nations, and causes her to lay at the 
feet of impiety all that influence and ascendency, 
which the marvellous resources of her natural genius 
and catholic temperament have given her over the 
whole world. By the revolutionary spirit, of which 
she has become in Europe the principal centre, and 
most active furnace, by the practical atheism she 
professes in her government and laws, does she exer¬ 
cise, in regard to blasphemy, a kind of universal 
proselytism, not less baneful to individuals than 
to society. Is it then astonishing that she should be 
especially menaced by the shafts of Divine Justice? 
13 * 


150 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


Happily, she has in Heaven powerful intercessors 
among the Angels and Saints,—the glorious Arch¬ 
angel St. Michael, and more especially St. Louis, the 
greatest and wisest of her kings. When our Lord 
manifested Himself to the virgin of Carmel, already 
had the influence of this her regal protector been 
felt ; for it was in the name of St. Louis, and under 
his patronage that the first cry of pardon for blas¬ 
phemy ascended to the throne of God ; it was imme¬ 
diately after his Feast and the “ Forty Days’ devo¬ 
tions” in his honor, that was laid, we might say, the 
basis of the Work of the Reparation. 

It seems that Rome herself, through the voice of 
her Pontiff, was preparing for France the support 
and encouragement capable of fostering the efforts 
about to be made for her salvation. We will listen 
to our little Sister’s own account of those touching 
coincidences. 

“ At this time,” says she, “ it was our Lord’s Will 
to assuage my soul by a great consolation. It came 
to my knowledge that there existed in Rome an 
Association for the extirpation of blasphemy. And 
what was my delight and thankfulness to read on 
the printed sheet of this Association, that the Sover¬ 
eign Pontiff had issued, August 8, 1843, a Brief 
permitting the establishment of pious Confraterni¬ 
ties for the same end ! Oh ! I now no longer 
doubted that the mission entrusted to me was the 
work of God. What especially touched me, and 
awakened my greatest admiration, was the follow¬ 
ing striking coincidence in this manifestation of 
Divine Providence: on the 8th of August, 1843, 
the Sovereign Pontiff issued his Brief at Rome, and 


THE REPARATION. 


151 


on the 26th of the same month and in the same 
year, our Lord revealed to an obscure little Car¬ 
melite novice in France,* this great work for the 
Reparation of blasphemy, with which He willed to 
enrich France, as a means of salvation, screening 
her from His irritated Justice.” 

She adds : “ Several pious souls now commenced 
to recite the prayers of Reparation, the Rules of the 
Association were distributed, and an attempt was 
even made to establish a branch in France.” f 

Later, as we will learn in the course of our nar¬ 
rative, the Sister receives promises of pardon and 
pledges of hope,—the merited chastisement of the 
guilty nation will be mitigated, for an especial 
source of mercy is about to be opened upon her, 
because she was the kingdom of St. Louis, and is 
still the kingdom of Mary. 

* Novice Professed , because in the Carmelite Order the Sisters 
remain novices, three years after their Profession. 

| Document B, p. 25. 


CHAPTER IX. 


THE ASSOCIATION. 

“ He has shown me this Association under the figure of an army 
of valiant soldiers, united to Him as their Chief, to defend 
His Father’s glory.” (The Sistei^s words.) 

Marie de Saint-Pierre, urged almost irresistibly to 
make an act of entire and absolute donation of her¬ 
self to our Lord, for the accomplishment of His 
designs, which she was prevented doing only by the 
opposition of her Superiors, thought, in the sim¬ 
plicity of her heart, that she could answer the 
exigencies of the Divine Master, by the following 
rather fraudulent means, which she relates with 
her usual candor. The incident occurred on the 
Feast of the Annunciation of the most Blessed Vir¬ 
gin, a day on which the Church celebrates also the 
Incarnation of the Son of God, which, as we have 
seen, is the patronal Feast of Carmel of Tours. 

“ I had felt,” says she, “ an increase of devotion 
to the Holy Infant Jesus, and one of my Sisters 
likewise experiencing the same attraction towards 
the Divine Child, we had formed the design ot 
honoring Him, by an especial consecration of our¬ 
selves to Him, on this the day of His Incarnation. 
It devolved on me to write the formula; and I 
152 


THE ASSOCIATION. 


153 


wrote it in words as conformable as possible to the 
act of perfect sacrifice our Lord had seemed to exact 
of me ; I did not wish to do this without permis¬ 
sion, but for fear of a refusal, instead of asking our 
Reverend Mother myself, I requested the Sister 
to ask her permission for both of us to make to 
Jesus the desired act of Consecration. Our Mother 
granted the request, and then I was delighted, be¬ 
lieving I had at last obtained the object of my 
desires. But, the Holy Child does not like fraud ; 
He received this act only as a simple consecration, 
according to the intention of my Superioress when 
giving the permission; and therefore He told me, 
that in order to have the requisite and perfect con¬ 
sent, I must ask it again. I accused myself of my 
fault to our Reverend Mother, and told her what 
our Lord had said to me. She then mentioned it to 
our worthy Father Superior, and finally, I received 
their full consent.” Let us add, that this favor was 
not granted immediately; an extreme delicacy of 
conscience had urged her to confess to her Superioress 
this “fault” as she styles it, and they used the 
knowledge in putting her to further test, for it was 
only at the expiration of nine months, she, at last, 
obtained the permission so ardently desired. 

As an introduction to this part of her subject, 
the pious Sister makes the following observation : 
“ There is,” says she, “ something remarkable in 
this express Will of our Lord, that I should make a 
perfect immolation of myself for the accomplish¬ 
ment of His designs, for is He not the Sovereign 
Master of His creatures? Is He not free to do in 
them and with them whatever He wills? More- 


154 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


over, He has likewise required the full consent of 
my Superiors, before taking perfect possession of 
my soul. Ah ! it was because they were to have 
a great share in the work this Divine Saviour 
willed to erect upon such miserable soil ; I was to 
serve them only as a poor instrument in their labors 
for the work of God, and as they were to receive 
many contradictions, our Lord respected, in a man¬ 
ner, their free will.” 

She continues : “ I made this act on the 25th of 
December, 1843, Feast of the Nativity of the Holy 
Infant Jesus. I placed it in the hands of the most 
Blessed Virgin, just at the beginning of Christmas 
Matins, praying her to offer it to Jesus, born at 
midnight in the Stable of Bethlehem. 

a ACT of perfect donation to the most holy 

INFANT JESUS, ACCORDING TO THE EXTENT OF 
HIS WILL UPON ME, FOR THE ACCOMPLISHMENT 
OF HIS DESIGNS FOR THE GLORY OF THE HOLY 
NAME OF GOD. 

“ O most Holy and most amiable Infant Jesus ! 
that day so ardently desired has at last arrived, 
when without fear of failing in obedience, I 
may freely offer myself to Thee, according to the 
extent of Thy power and Thy Will over my soul, 
for the accomplishment of Thy designs. I am most 
unworthy, it is true, of making Thee this offering ; 
but, O Divine Child ! since it appears that Thou 
dost desire it, vouchsafe to purify Thy victim by 
the tears of Thy Holy Infancy, and Thy Precious 
Blood. Yes, my divine Spouse, on this ever mem- 


THE ASSOCIATION. 


155 


orable night of Thy august Nativity, prostrate 
before Thee in the erib, with full permission to do 
so, I offer myself entirely to Thee, through the 
blessed hands of Mary and Joseph, upon the flam¬ 
ing altar of Thy Sacred Heart consumed with love ; 
under the protection of the Angels and Saints, I 
there make Thee the entire sacrifice of myself for 
the fulfilment of Thy designs to the glory of God’s 
Holy Name. O Divine Child ! Who didst say to 
Thy holy Mother when she found Thee in the 
temple of Jerusalem, 1 Why did ye seek me? Did 
ye not know that I must be about My Father’s 
business?’ deign to receive me, this day, as Thy 
disciple. Grant, that in union with Thee, I may 
henceforth be occupied only with such things as 
regard the service of Thy Divine Father, and the 
glory of His Holy Name. O most Holy Infant 
Jesus ! God and Man; I renounce myself, and I 
give myself entirely to Thee. Do with me, and in 
me what will be pleasing to Thee, for the accom¬ 
plishment of Thy designs ; I am Thy property, take 
sovereign possession of me. Yes, Divine Child, 
most gladly for the love of Thee, do I divest myself 
of all things forever.. Deign then, in Thy great 
mercy, to clothe me with the garment of Thy sacred 
merits which is perfumed with the good odor of 
Thy virtues, that on the day of judgment, I may 
receive the blessing of Thy celestial Father. 
Amen.* 

“ I take for notary of this contract made with the 
Holy Infant Jesus, our Blessed Father Pierre de 


* Document A, p. 79. 


156 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


Bertille, Apostle of the Incarnate Word, and for 
witnesses and protectors, all the Angels and Saints 
of Heaven. 

Sister Marie de Saint-Pierre 
of the Holy Family, 

Unworthy Carmelite . 

“ After I had made this Act of Oblation to our 
Lord, He looked upon me, notwithstanding my 
unworthiness, as entirely His, and continued to con¬ 
struct in my soul, His edifice to the glory of God’s 
Holy Name. At the same time, He urged me to ask 
my Superiors to have printed the prayers of Repa¬ 
ration, that thus the devotion might be propagated. 
But when I addressed this petition to our most 
Reverend Mother, she reproved me severely for my 
presumption, saying that it was much more becom¬ 
ing and proper to recite the beautiful formula of 
prayers composed by the holy Fathers, and that I 
was very stubborn to persist in thinking always of 
this Work of the Reparation. I now made an offer¬ 
ing to the Blessed Virgin of all my disappointments 
as a spiritual alms, with the intention that she would 
defray the expense of printing these prayers, which 
it was the will of Her Divine Son should be dis¬ 
tributed throughout the world. 

“ Nevertheless, our Lord was pleased to grant 
great graces to the Sisters of our Community who 
recited these prayers either for themselves or their 
relatives. Being utterly ignorant of the author, 
they spoke very freely before me, saying: ‘We 
indeed obtain all we desire from our Lord by mak¬ 
ing the Novena of Reparation!’ About this time 


THE ASSOCIATION. 


157 


one of our Sisters was taken very sick ; she felt in¬ 
spired to promise our Lord that she would make this 
Novena; she began it, and on the third day, was 
suddenly cured. She confided this to me, and I 
experienced great joy thereat ; for seeing that our 
Lord thus granted several very signal favors, I 
became confirmed in the impression that I was not 
deceived, and that, by the grace of God, the lights, 
which, through His mercy, I had received concern¬ 
ing this Work, were not illusions. One day, after 
Holy Communion, the good Master vouchsafed, not¬ 
withstanding my unworthiness, to console me by 
these words, which have since been verified : ‘ My 
daughter 9 these prayers of the Reparation will he 
printed and distributed! ’ 

“ Our worthy and charitable Superiors, who were 
seriously examining God’s guidance of my soul in 
order to determine whether it was indeed His spirit 
which led me, commanded me to give them, in writ¬ 
ing, an account of my interior. The following is 
what I prepared for them : 

“ ‘ My Reverend and Most Honored Mother, with 
the help of the Holy Infant Jesus, and my Guardian 
Angel, I will try and fulfil the command you have 
given me of disclosing to you the manner in which I 
make my prayer. This is somewhat difficult, but 
obedience will aid me to accomplish the task. More¬ 
over, you, my most Reverend Mother, are accus¬ 
tomed to my unlettered mode of expression; in what 
I am about to write you will perceive the dispositions 
of my soul, and this is the essential part. In the 
first place, I must say, that I have no merit in 
prayer, it is perfectly natural to me ; even from child- 
14 


158 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


hood, notwithstanding my unworthiness, have I 
enjoyed this gift of God. As a remote preparation, 
I try never to lose sight of our Lord ; thus, during 
the day, I keep Him company in my soul. Having 
left to this Divine Saviour the care of my kindred 
and friends and all that concerns myself, I am occu¬ 
pied only with Him, ever regarding myself as the 
little servant of the Holy Family. Consequently, 
all my duties of turn-Sister I perform as if in the 
house of Nazareth. In my. opinion, the three 
especial offices of a servant are to accompany his 
master, to execute his commissions, and to guard the 
flocks on his estate, striving to do everything in 
exact accordance with his master's will. Well! 
this is what I try to do with the assistance of God's 
grace. My interior exercise is to accompany our 
Lord in His Mysteries, and thus, united with Him, 
render my homages of praise ; then, I perform His 
errands, pondering, meanwhile, these words of Holy 
Writ: ‘ And He was submissive to them ! ' Every 
time the turn-bell rings for me, I offer myself in 
sacrifice to the Eternal Father upon the altar of the 
Sacred Heart of Jesus, praying Him to unite me to 
His Divine Son, that thus it may be Jesus who acts 
in me. When I have no distracting occupation, I 
converse with Him, and lead His lambs to pasture,— 
that is, I dwell upon His Mysteries, the considera¬ 
tion and merits of which are food to our souls. I 
pray for the Pastors of the Church, and for the con¬ 
version of sinners. By uniting all my actions to 
those of the Divine Saviour, I endeavor to avoid 
distractions ; hence, exterior occupations rarely dis¬ 
turb the recollection of my soul, but, on the contrary, 


THE ASSOCIATION. 


159 


increase its yearning for the repose of prayer, and 
when the hour for that exercise arrives, then does 
our Lord compensate me, indeed, for all my little 
sacrifices of the day. 

“ ‘ At the beginning of prayer I make the exami¬ 
nation of conscience; after which, humbling myself 
at the feet of Jesus for all my infidelities, I beseech 
Him mercifully to purify my soul. Then, I con¬ 
verse in all simplicity with this amiable Saviour as a 
child with its father. Here is a method of prayer 
our Lord gave me, one day, I know not whether by 
interior words or through an illumination : 

“ ( Empty your soul by recollection ; 

‘ Purify it by an act of contrition ; 

‘ Then replenish it with God.’ 

“ ‘ But as it is useless to keep pouring into a vase 
once filled, so likewise is it useless to attempt burden¬ 
ing the soul by new acts and thoughts, when a single 
one fills and occupies it. Sometimes, I feel interiorly 
urged to make my prayer in union with our Lord 
offering Himself for the glory of His Father and 
salvation of souls ; then, I become recollected in the 
Sacred Heart of Jesus. In this Great Sacrifice I find 
sufficient matter for meditation ; for being thus 
clothed with our Lord Jesus Christ, and enriched 
by His merits, I more easily approach His Divine 
Father, and fear not to ask of God great graces 
for Holy Church and the salvation of souls. I 
am often attracted to this kind of prayer which is 
not entirely supernatural, except inasmuch as I feel 
that the powers of my soul are gathered into the 
Heart of Jesus ; then, the Lord acts in me and I in 
Him, and distractions are rare, because the imagina- 


160 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


tion is held captive. But, when I am thus near our 
Lord and He wills to communicate something con¬ 
cerning His Work of the Reparation, there takes 
place in my soul a second operation ; I feel powerless 
to make interior acts, and my own mind seems anni¬ 
hilated in order to give place to Jesus. My soul 
liea-rs His words interiorly. The greater this anni¬ 
hilation, the happier the soul ; it seems as though 
melted in God. It finds itself in this state, lost in 
Him, without knowing how it has become so; a 
dominant attraction seizes it, raises it above itself, 
and plunges it in God. Oh ! what delightful 
moments! This perfect contemplation, an entirely 
gratuitous favor, I rarely experience; I am very 
unworthy of so great a grace. My usual prayer is 
made in the Sacred Heart of Jesus ; there He teaches 
me His Will, and communicates by me His desires of 
laboring for the glory of His Father and the sal¬ 
vation of souls; this is my happy occupation. It 
is impossible for me to meditate long ; first, because 
I have no aptness for it, and, moreover, this yearn¬ 
ing which comes from the Heart of Jesus bears my 
soul towards Him, and soon I find myself in 
that Divine sanctuary, as a child on its mother’s 
bosom ; then, the will and the affections of my heart 
do all ; my poor mind is relieved of its work. It is 
our Lord who has called me to this kind of prayer, 
for, in the beginning, I dared not yield to the attrac¬ 
tions for fear of doing wrong by not following my 
method; but He, Whose Will it was that I should 
follow His ways, one day put this comparison before 
me: ‘If you were invited to the table of a king, it 
would be very ridiculous in you to bring your dinner, 


THE ASSOCIATION. 


161 


instead of partaking of that your nost nad furnished/ 
Having sought counsel regarding this manner of 
prayer, I was told not to fear, but to walk in the 
path opened to me by the Holy Ghost, that this 
was the best method, and my happy experience 
therein has convinced me of the fact, for the repasts 
of the Sacred Heart of Jesus I find far superior to 
any I could prepare with the utmost efforts of my 
poor human mind; and the bell sometimes ends 
these delightful feasts, ere I have had time to thank 
my Benefactor. Then I do so briefly, taking the 
resolution not to lose sight of His Presence, and to 
serve Him faithfully, since He has had the charity to 
treat me so generously, notwithstanding my unworth¬ 
iness. I am not without experiencing a dearth of 
consolations, from time to time, for aridity and 
interior trials are sometimes very necessary to the 
soul. During these seasons, I take my spiritual 
aliment, as our Lord judges proper to dispense it 
to me/ ” * 

We have presented to our readers, abridged in no 
wise, the foregoing letter, so replete with touching 
confidence, and so elevated in character. Its con¬ 
tents reveal the reflections of an humble, confiding 
soul, raised by degrees to the most sublime heights 
of the contemplative life and prayer. At the school 
of the Sacred Heart, and instructed by the Holy 
Ghost, we behold this Sister become a faithful imi¬ 
tator of St. Gertrude, and a worthy daughter of St. 
Teresa. She certainly has made astonishing and 
admirable progress in the ways of Divine union. 

* Document A, p. 76 to 80. 

14 * 


162 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


When treating of this subject, her style is trans¬ 
figured ; to her usual simplicity, the unlettered Car¬ 
melite joins ingenuous comparisons, and depths of 
spiritual wisdom, at times not unworthy of our best 
ascetic writers. The Superiors could no longer be 
mistaken; it was evident that grace was gaining 
greater hold on this holy soul, fashioning it for its 
own ends—the making it the privileged instrument 
of the great Work so necessary to France and the 
Church. The Divine Master did not long delay 
communicating new lights, more clearly revealing 
His intentions. Not only did He ask the establish¬ 
ment of an Association of Reparation, but also of 
an Arch-confraternity analogous to that of Our 
Lady of Victory, thus forming a central Work, to 
which similar Confraternities throughout the var¬ 
ious dioceses of France would be aggregated. 

Let us now listen to Marie de Saint-Pierre’s own 
account of the communications vouchsafed her on 
this subject, February 2, 1844. “ For several 

weeks, I had not experienced anything extraordi¬ 
nary relative to the Work of the Reparation, except 
that our Lord continued to unite me interiorly with 
Himself, in glorifying His Divine Father, and 
repairing the outrages committed against Him, also, 
in asking the sanctification of His Father’s Name. 
To-day, Feast of the Presentation of Jesus in the 
Temple, it was my turn to offer Holy Communion 
in fulfilment of the Vow.” 

This vow which the Sister has mentioned before, 
was made by the Mother Prioress, Marie of the 
Incarnation for the temporal needs of the monas¬ 
tery, at a time when there was question of leaving 


THE ASSOCIATION. 


163 


their old convent and building another, as has been 
already related. For one year, two Religious in 
turn, were to receive Holy Communion daily, and 
pray for the accomplishment of the designs of the 
Sacred Heart, thus to draw down upon the Com¬ 
munity our Lord’s especial protection. 

“ It was my turn,” continues the Sister, “ and the 
good Master saw fit, on this day, in spite of my 
unworthiness, to communicate Himself to my soul. 
On the occasion immediately preceding the last on 
which He had spoken to me, He was greatly 
incensed against France, and the communication 
left me in a state, of terror impossible to describe ; 
but to-day, He has filled me with joy, by making 
known to me the satisfaction His Divine Heart 
experiences, on beholding the zeal and desires of 
His children for this rising Association. 

“ In the same manner as His holy Mother has 
adopted the Arch-confraternity for the conversion 
of sinners, will He adopt the Arch-confraternity of 
the Reparation ; they are to go hand-in-hand, one to 
repair the indignities offered God, the other to 
obtain pardon from Him ; one belonging especially 
to Jesus, the other to Mary. Our Lord also made 
me understand that the object of the Association He 
wished established in France was two-fold : First, 
The Reparation of blasphemy ; Secondly, The Sanc¬ 
tification on the Lord’s Day of His Holy Name— 
consequently, the extirpation of blasphemy and the 
prevention of servile works on Sunday and Holy- 
days, blasphemy and the violation of the Lord’s 
Days, being the principal sins which have pro¬ 
voked God’s anger against France. 


164 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


“ In addition to the regulations prescribed by the 
Association at Rome, it is enjoined upon members 
of the Confraternity established in France, that they 
will not only refrain from work themselves on for¬ 
bidden days, but will likewise use all possible efforts 
to effect a reformation on this point. Our Lord 
desires this Arch-confraternity to be placed under the 
patronage of St. Michael, St. Martin, and St. Louis,— 
that each member will say daily a Pater, Ave and 
Gloria . Patri, together with the “ Act of Praise ” He 
has given me under the title of the Golden Arrow, 
and an invocation to these holy patron Saints ; but, 
on Sundays and Feast-days, all the Prayers of the 
Reparation are to be recited, in expiation of the out¬ 
rages committed against God at such times, and to 
obtain pardon for the guilty. He has shown me 
this Association under the figure of an army of 
valiant soldiers united to Him, as to their Chief to 
defend the glory of His Father. It is His Will that 
their name accord with the nobility of their calling, 
and their title be that of ‘ Defenders of the Holy 
Name of God. J He also made me understand that 
each member should wear a cross, having these 
words engraved on the one side : Sit nomen Domini 
benedictum, and on the other, these : Vade retro, 
Satana. This divine weapon He will endue with 
a secret virtue for combating the demon of blas¬ 
phemy. Every time one hears a blasphemy uttered, 
he must repeat the inscription on this cross; thus 
will he defeat Satan and render glory to God. 

“Our Lord intimated to me, that the demon 
would do his utmost to annihilate this Work sprung 
from His Sacred Heart. It seems to me that I 


THE ASSOCIATION. 


165 


would give the very last drop of my blood for so 
holy an Association. The Saviour also made me 
understand that He had not spoken to me for a 
long time, because it was unnecessary ; that He did 
nothing uselessly; that to-day it was needful, because 
He wished to show me the difference existing be¬ 
tween the Association of France and that of Italy, 
by reason of the especial prohibition of labor on 
Sundays and Holydays, attached to the former only. 
Oh ! if it were but known what delight this bud¬ 
ding Association gives Jesus, how one would hasten 
to increase the joy of His Heart, by being enrolled 
in the glorious militia under His command, to 
combat and conquer, by His Cross, the enemies of 
God’s Holy Name.” 

The Association in Italy here alluded to by Sister 
Saint-Pierre, and which we have already mentioned, 
was that which His Holiness Pope Gregory had 
established, by a Decree of August 8, 1843. Its 
centre was at Rome in the Oratory of Father Cara- 
vita, and it was placed under the patronage of St. 
Louis, King of France. Each member promised 
never to utter either blasphemy or imprecation ; and 
those in positions of authority were also bound to 
exert their influence in preventing their subordi¬ 
nates from falling into this sin. When not possible 
to prevent these offences, they must, at least, make 
interiorly, aspirations to glorify the Holy Name of 
God, such as,—“ God be praised ” “ May His Holy 
Name be blessed!” Each membei must recite a 
Pater and Ave daily for the conversion of blas¬ 
phemers. His Holiness granted great spiritual 
benefits to this Association, among others, a Plen- 


166 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


ary Indulgence every month, on any day chosen by 
the individual, provided the ordinary conditions 
were fulfilled; also, a Plenary Indulgence at the 
hour of death, if the person invoked, at least, in his 
heart the Holy Name of Jesus,—finally, numerous 
Partial Indulgences. 

An Association for the Reparation of blasphemy 
was accordingly not a new thing in the Church ; 
hence, Marie de Saint-Pierre was greatly consoled 
on learning of the existence of the Roman Associa¬ 
tion, for from this fact, she reasonably inferred 
the Divine origin of the communications with 
which she had been favored on the subject. But, 
as there was question also of repairing and com¬ 
bating an especial evil of our age, and one which 
was daily spreading with frightful rapidity, the 
sole end proposed by the “ Association of Italy,” 
which was Reparation for the sin of blasphemy, was 
not sufficient for the fearful needs of France. Here 
was it necessary that Reparation be likewise made 
for the profanation of Sunday. However, we must 
remark, that the sinful violation of the Lord’s 
Days, the Sister regarded as a positive outrage 
against God’s sovereignty, and an indignity offered 
the sanctification of His Name; which crime was, 
in her eyes, identical with blasphemy. In fact, 
by reason of the non-suspension of labor, the 
Name of the Lord has almost ceased to be adored, 
venerated, known, or glorified as it should be. 
From the ignorance and contempt of which it is 
the object results a social evil, the more baneful 
to families and society, in proportion as it becomes 
more general and extended Here also does France 


THE ASSOCIATION. 


167 


hold the first place among guilty îations ; for in her 
midst, is the precept of the Sunday rest transgressed 
with the most audacious impunity. Protestant coun¬ 
tries, even, the Jews and Mohammedans, officially 
recognize a day of public prayer ; but in France, the 
law and state have ceased to do so ; a lamentable 
fact indeed, exciting great astonishment, and a 
source of scandal to the many strangers who visit 
our country. 

For this reason, in an Association of Reparation 
in France, it was proper that the members be en¬ 
joined not to work on forbidden days, and also to 
make strenuous efforts to prevent all servile works 
at such times. Furthermore, was it meet that the 
prospective Association be placed under the patron¬ 
age of St. Michael, St. Martin and St. Louis. Blas¬ 
phemy and the profanation of Sunday are sins 
directly attacking God, by the violation of the first 
three Commandments of His Law, and thus emi¬ 
nently diabolical in character. These unhappy pro- 
faners labor, not for themselves, but for the demon 
who degrades and enslaves them. Hence, the an¬ 
cient enemy of Lucifer, St. Michael, styled the 
Defender of the Eldest Daughter of the Church, as 
he was of the people of God, was indeed fitting 
patron of a work whose pass-word is, “Begone! 
get thee behind me, Satan ! ” and whose object is to 
glorify the adorable Name of the Most High. 
Equally appropriate is that other patron, St. 
Martin, the glorious Apostle of God, that formid¬ 
able adversary of the demon, who driving him from 
the land and sweeping from it the last traces of 
idolatry, became by this renowned apostleship of 


168 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


charity and zeal, one of Christianity’s purest lights, 
and the especial protector of France. And again, 
since even at Rome the Association is placed under 
the auspices of St. Louis, because of the just severity 
with which he punished blasphemy, it was but 
proper that in France, where unhappily the tradi¬ 
tions of his piety have been too much neglected, 
his patronage also be added to the protection of 
an institution, whose aim is to obtain by prayer and 
the rigorous observance of the Divine Command¬ 
ments, what this great prince accomplished whilst 
on earth, by the lustre of his virtues, and the wisdom 
of his laws.* 

A few weeks later, February 25, 1844, the Sister 
‘returns to her subject. “ Our Lord,” writes she to 
the Mother Prioress, “ desires, and most ardently, to 
have the Work of the Reparation established in the 
manner He has made known to me. It seems to 
me, that I hear this Divine Jesus addressing us 
these words from the depths of the Tabernacle: 

‘ O ye, My friends and faithful children, behold ! 
if there be any sorrow like unto Mine! My 
Divine Father, and my Spouse, Holy Church, cher¬ 
ished objects of My Heart are despised and out¬ 
raged by My enemies ! Will none rise up to con¬ 
sole Me, by combating in Their defence ? I can no 
longer remain in the midst of this ungrateful peo¬ 
ple ! Behold ! what torrents of tears flow from My 
eyes ! Can I find none to wipe them away, by mak¬ 
ing Reparation to the glory of My Father and 
imploring the conversion of the guilty ? 9 

* Life of Sister Marie de Saint-Pierre de la Sainte-Famille , p. 
131, (1879). 


THE ASSOCIATION. 


169 


u Such, my Reverend Mother, are the sentiments 
with which God has filled my soul, causing it to 
suffer all that interior anguish which the glorious 
Heart of Jesus can no more feel. Here is another 
thought which impresses me profoundly,—if a king, 
or only his ambassador be treated with indignity by 
a foreign power, the whole nation immediately rises 
up in arms to avenge the insult, troops are mus¬ 
tered, and the death of numberless soldiers is ac¬ 
counted as nothing ! And yet the Holy and terri¬ 
ble Name of the God of Hosts, of the King of 
Kings, is despised, and blasphemed, His Day is 
profaned by sinners in number infinite, and no one 
thinks of reparation, no one seems even troubled 
thereat. Behold! our Lord Jesus, the Envoy and 
Son of the God of Armies, the Ambassador of the 
Kingdom of Heaven, exacts a Reparation of honor 
to His Eternal Father, or war will be declared 
against us, and France feel the chastisements of His 
wrath ! Shall we then waver in our choice ? ” 

Whilst reading these thrilling interrogations, these 
vivid apostrophes, is there any who will not feel pro¬ 
foundly moved, and ask, what, in the Providence of 
God, might have been the result to France, had our 
Lord’s desire thus communicated to His servant, 
been publicly manifested and immediately carried 
out in its full extent? Would the world have ever 
witnessed those woes which have since fallen upon 
us, and would we still fear the advent of impend¬ 
ing calamities ? 

The Sister here makes a break in her narration, 
to ask, that she may inform the Archbishop of 
Tours of all that had been revealed to her, on the 
15 


170 LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 

subject of the Reparation, since the Feast of St. 
Louis. “Will you,” says she to the Mother 
Prioress, “ examine with the Reverend Father 
Superior, whether there be anything contrary to 
humility in my writing to His Grace, as I earn¬ 
estly wish to do? Most humbly do I solicit the 
permission. Having written to him, then will I 
have done all that lies in my power for the accom¬ 
plishment of the Work, which, notwithstanding my 
unworthiness, has been revealed to me; yet, I will 
not write to His Grace, until I feel my soul under 
the influence of the Holy Spirit, for I do not wish 
to make use of my own mind which is capable of 
nothing; I desire in this to be only our Lord’s 
pen.” * 

Elsewhere, in another letter, she says: “Our 
Lord overwhelmed me with such intense interior 
anguish, through yearning to see His Work estab¬ 
lished, that I was not in a fit state to take any 
bodily sustenance; I could no longer bear this 
heavy burden without succumbing under its weight; 
this was why I felt so strongly urged to deposit it 
at the feet of His Grace, the Archbishop.” f 


* Document B, p. 30. 
f Document-A, p. 83. 


CHAPTER X. 


THE ARCHBISHOP. 

“ Our Lord told to me, that He entrusted France to my care, 
and constituted me her ambassador to treat of peace with 
Him.” ( The Sister f s words.) 

Until now, with the exception of the Reverend 
Father Superior of the House, the Sister’s confessor, 
and a few very intimate friends whom the Mother 
Prioress had acquainted with the facts, nothing of 
what we have read relative to Marie de Saint-Pierre 
was known outside the Carmelite convent. As yet 
the ecclesiastical authority had not been informed ; 
but the gravity of the last revelations made to the 
Carmelite virgin, and her persistence in asking that 
it be laid before the Archbishop, made it an obliga¬ 
tion on the Reverend Mother to do so. We will 
add that this Reverend Mother was Marie of the 
Incarnation, highly esteemed by the Archbishop. 

The See of St. Martin was at this time occu¬ 
pied by Mgr. Morlot, two years previously trans¬ 
ferred thence from Orleans. This holy prelate 
was eminent for great delicacy of conscience and 
exemplary regularity. The other high dignities 
subsequently conferred upon him in the lustre 
of the Roman Purple, with which he was clothed 

171 


172 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


in 1854, and the title of Archbishop of Paris, 
to which See he was raised in 1856, served rather 
to increase than lessen his detachment for the 
things of earth, of which spirit he more than once 
gave admirable and touching proof. His life, pre¬ 
maturely worn out by the onerous labors of his 
Episcopal office, was crowned by the most edifying 
death. During an Episcopate of fourteen years, the 
affability of his manners, and his.extensive charities, 
won for him at Tours, as at Paris, popular and 
unalterable esteem. He loved Carmel, and it afforded 
him no small gratification, in 1846, to install the 
Religious of that Order in their new monastery on 
Ursuline street, and officiate at the solemn conse¬ 
cration of their chapel. At the time of the dis¬ 
astrous inundation which soon followed, his Grace 
hastened to shelter the Community in his episcopal 
palace, and for several days gave them that gra¬ 
cious hospitality which permitted them quietly to 
continue all their regular exercises. 

Prudence, very great prudence, was the dominant 
feature of his character. Unfortunately, this natural 
quality increased by his experience of human nature, 
and the critical events through which he had been 
fated to pass, at times approached such extreme 
caution as to appear like timidity, which others, 
more ardent, and less, circumspect than himself, 
feared not to tax as a weakness. 

His intentions were ever pure, his conscience 
upright, but instead of acting, he often hesitated and 
temporized ; in such cases he willingly took counsel, 
but he allowed the influence of his councillors to 
become so preponderant as to easily divert him from 


THE ARCHBISHOP. 


173 


his original purpose, what his own good judgment 
and sense of duty dictated, and what he would have 
executed if left to himself. More than once was 
his administration affected by this, as we shall see in 
the case of Marie de Saint-Pierre, and consequently 
of M. Dupont, although the Prelate professed the 
highest esteem for this holy man, and gave striking 
evidences of it, which we have elsewhere related. 

M. Dupont was the first to lament (but in secret) 
the Archbishop’s extreme prudence, in postponing 
matters apparently demanding immediate execution, 
and he not unfrequently met with refusals and 
humiliations on this point. 

Though never departing from that deference, and 
perfect submission due the authority and person of 
the Archbishop, he sometimes, to revoke the too 
rigid decisions of his Grace, made use of means, 
whose irresistible power soon wrought the desired 
change. One day when this pious layman, in the 
ardor of his zeal, had just experienced one of these 
mortifying refusals, concerning the revelations of 
Sister Saint-Pierre, he meets, on leaving the Arch¬ 
bishop’s residence, a clerical friend, to whom he 
confides his grief. Together they walk down quiet 
Ursuline street along the high walls of the Archi¬ 
épiscopal garden. Approaching the Carmelite con¬ 
vent, M. Dupont suddenly stops, and taking from 
his pocket a St. Benedict’s medal, says : “ Well, we 
must have recourse to the great means ; ” then kissing 
the medal,with an expressive gesture, he throws it over 
the Avail of the aforesaid garden, saying, as he did 
so, Ascende swperius: “ ascend higher.” The desired 
effect was not long delayed. That evening, M. 
15* 


174 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


Dupont, joyful and smiling, went to see his friend the 
priest, and informed him that Mgr. Morlot, unso¬ 
licited, had sent for him, and in the most courteous 
manner, granted his request.* 

In his heart, the good Archbishop Joved and vene¬ 
rated this holy member of his flock. How often 
did he not solicit the favor of his company at his 
table ? But, the humble “ pilgrim of Saint-Etienne 
Street,” always declined, though most politely and 
deferentially. On one occasion, however, he ac¬ 
cepted the invitation, to please his worthy mother, 
who told him that he could not with propriety do 
otherwise. So we find him on arriving in the Arch¬ 
bishop’s dining room with the other guests. Just 
as they are sitting down to table, behold ! a plate is 
wanting, a servant in mistake no doubt has just 
removed it. This did not escape the observant eye 
of our guest. With a profound bow to the Arch¬ 
bishop, he said to him in a low voice, “ You indeed 
see, Monseigneur, that I ought not to dine with 
such high dignitaries, since there is no plate for 
me.” Whilst Mgr. Morlot in his annoyance, was 
giving orders to remedy the mistake, M. Dupont 
had adroitly left the room and gained the foot of 
the stairs; when they sent after him he had disap¬ 
peared, f 

A short time after the death of Sister Saint-Pierre, 
when there was question of establishing the Noc¬ 
turnal Adoration, and later, of “St. Martin’s Cloth¬ 
ing Society” for the poor, the venerable Archbishop 
showed great zeal in seconding M. Dupont’s efforts. 

* Life of M. Dupont, p. 145. 

f Life of M. Dupont, p. 384. 


THE ARCHBISHOP. 


175 


We have seen a copy of the by-laws of these two 
holy Works, corrected and annotated by the Arch¬ 
bishop’s own hand, wherein he bestows unqualified 
praise upon their zealous and charitable founder. 

We have not considered these details unnecessary 
digressions, as we wish thereby to acquaint our 
readers with the eminent Prelate with whom Marie 
de Saint-Pierre is soon to be brought in direct com¬ 
munication. 

The Reverend Pierre Aileron, Superior of the 
Carmelites, and the Mother Prioress, Marie of the 
Incarnation, at length determined to send the Arch¬ 
bishop an exact and full account of what had taken 
place since the 25th of August, 1843. Mgr. Morlot 
in so important a conjuncture, acted with all that 
prudence and extreme discretion characteristic of 
him. He had the several accounts Sister Saint- 
Pierre had been required to write, brought to him, 
and personally examined them. The exterior marks 
of their perfect sincerity he could not fail to per¬ 
ceive. Approving of the conduct of the Superiors, 
he encouraged them to continue. As to the end of 
these communications, the Archbishop so fully 
appreciated their value and seasonableness, that he 
did not hesitate to dwell upon the subject in his 
Lenten Pastoral of the following year, 1844. Here 
is an extract from it regarding the profanation of 
Sunday : “ Is labor suspended ? How many silent 
workshops do you see ? Show me the public places, 
the streets of the city where worldly affairs are inter¬ 
rupted, or the bustle of trade on this day ? Every¬ 
where do noise, agitation and confusion reign, 
the restless ardor, of man devoting himself, as on 


176 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


other days, to business and pleasures. Here we see 
rising up on one side, costly edifices whose construc¬ 
tion God does not bless ; there, displayed in orna¬ 
mental profusion, are the products of industry,—all 
the speculations of commerce proceed as usual, for 
the calculations of an insatiate cupidity know no 
cessation. Even in our rural districts, in our most 
retired hamlets, is this forgetfulness of God the 
source of profanations, and no less deplorable dis¬ 
orders. . . . And, as if to fill the measure of these 
iniquities against the Supreme Majesty, nearly every¬ 
where do we behold a frightful partition of Sunday, 
a part given to business and the remainder to pleas¬ 
ure, forbidden works being followed by vain amuse¬ 
ments, servile occupations by intemperance and dis¬ 
sipation.” 

Enumerating the consequences of this gross prof¬ 
anation, the Prelate continues : u On the one side, 
open revolts and scandalous outrages against the 
Divinity, on the other, indifference and cowardice 
in the fulfilment of the first of duties, are the crimes 
provoking that powerful, patient justice, always self- 
sufficient, and in no need of punishing every day , 
because it is mighty and eternal, unlike that earthly 
justice, which may be balked and intimidated by 
the multitude of the guilty, and may allow the 
sword to escape from its grasp by reason of the 
numbers it has to strike. Ah ! when God wills to 
punish, his strokes are stayed not by the number 
of the guilty, ... it is then He counts only the just, 
and when these have disappeared from a nation it 
must needs feel the strength of His avenging 
Arm.” 


THE ARCHBISHOP. 


. 177 


Not content with this appeal thus made officially 
to his flock, the venerable Prelate, on the 15th of 
March, authorized the Association organized at 
Notre Dame-la-Riche for the reparation of blas¬ 
phemy. In establishing it in his parish, the pastor, 
the Rev. Pierre Aileron, had availed himself of the 
faculty conceded by the Papal Brief of August 8, 
1843, of which we have spoken ; consequently, the 
members were thus afforded an opportunity of gain¬ 
ing the numerous spiritual advantages granted to the 
Roman Association. Furthermore, it was at his 
request, permission had been granted the Sister to 
write to the Archbishop. “ We had,” says she, “ the 
honor of writing to his Grace. Already had our 
worthy Superiors communicated to him all that the 
Divine Master had made known to me upon the 
Work of the Reparation. Then this good Prelate 
had prayers printed, like those previously in circu¬ 
lation at Nantes ; to these he was pleased to affix 
his name and approbation, March 15, 1844, at the 
same time, recommending the Association to the 
reverend pastors and other ecclesiastics of his arch¬ 
diocese, ( in the hope/ says he, ‘ that it would awaken 
great-interest in the faithful, and thus assist in end¬ 
ing these outrages against the Sovereign Majesty.* 
Numbers of these printed prayers have been distrib¬ 
uted, but no association established ; it appears that 
the hour has not yet come. Let us silently adore 
the designs of God.** 

These last words indicate the dispositions with 
which the Sister had received, through the medium 
of the Mother Prioress, his Grace’s decisions. Though 
grieved that the Confraternity of Reparation had 


178 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


not been officially established in the archdiocese, she 
was consoled by the Archbishop’s encouragement 
and the personal approbation he had given to her 
communications, and hoped the day was not far dis¬ 
tant when he would place himself at the head of 
the Reparative movement, in her opinion, so neces¬ 
sary to the salvation of France. However, as time 
passed and he took no farther steps in the matter, 
but maintained an attitude of expectant reserve, she 
deemed this inaction the punishment of her own 
sins, and with many sighs, “ grieved bitterly,” says 
she, “ at beholding the Majesty of the Most High 
outraged without reparation, and the souls of a 
nation, which should be His, quickening their steps 
to perdition.” 

Overwhelmed by sorrow, the humble virgin turned 
to the Celestial Spouse who had confided to her the 
mission she so faithfully discharged. Then the 
Divine Saviour made her understand that it was in 
her own soul He wished meanwhile to carry on the 
Work of the Reparation. The following is her 
account of this to the Mother Prioress: “Permit 
me to inform you, in all simplicity, of what took 
place in my soul to-day after Holy Communion. 
Our Lord had inspired me to present myself to 
Him in the Name of France, and to receive Him 
into the kingdom of my soul as its King, offering to 
Him my Holy Communion in a spirit of Reparation 
for the crimes of our nation. Having received this 
Divine King, I felt strongly urged to lay before 
Him the necessities of our country ; then He com¬ 
municated Himself to my soul, and told me ‘ that He 
committed France to my care, constituting me her 


THE ARCHBISHOP. 


179 


ambassador to treat of peace with Him; that I 
must keep myself in great humility at His feet in 
the Most Blessed Sacrament, praying for France, 
and the establishment of the Work of the Reparation. 
He told me to weigh well the obligations of the 
charge imposed upon me ; for when an ambassador 
withdraws from a kingdom, it is the signal for war. 
Our Lord wished to make me understand that I 
must not voluntarily retire from His Presence in 
the Blessed Sacrament, that in spirit, at least, must 
I be always there, in the name of France. I 
answered, ‘ My God, I have given myself entirely to 
Thee for the accomplishment of Thy designs ; do 
with me according to Thy Holy WHI/ Prostrate 
on the earth I adored the designs of God, who makes 
use of such poor and unworthy instruments for His 
works. I have accepted the obligation He imposed 
upon me, beseeching Him to render me worthy of 
His designs, and to accomplish them in me. Con¬ 
cerning this adoration of Jesus in the Most Blessed 
Sacrament, for several days past, I have had an 
unusual attraction for it; on leaving the choir to 
attend to my various duties, I leave my heart and 
spirit at the feet of our good Saviour ; in whatever 
part of the house I may be, I try to look upon Him, 
and keep Him company. Such is the interior exer¬ 
cise our Lord asks of me, such His Will, that in the 
presence of the Blessed Sacrament, at least in spirit, 
I pray continually in the name of France.” 

The Divine Master heard His servant’s humble 
prayers, and continued to reveal to her the enormity 
of blasphemy. She writes thus : “ It seems to me, 
that I heard our Lord say, 1 You cannot compre- 


180 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


Lend the malice and abomination of this sin ; were 
My Justice not restrained by My Mercy, it would 
instantly crush the guilty, and all creatures, even 
those that are inanimate, would avenge My out¬ 
raged honor, but I have an Eternity in which to 
punish ! y After this, He made me understand the 
excellence of the Work of the Reparation, how it 
surpassed the various other devotions, how agree¬ 
able it was to God, to the Angels, the Saints, and 
how salutary to the Church. Oh ! if you did but 
know the glory a soul acquires in saying only 
once, in the spirit of Reparation for blasphemy, 
Mirabile Nomen Dei: Admirable is the Name of 
God ! ” Later the Sister writes, “You remember 
that our Lord, sometime ago, repeated the command 
He gave me to pray for France, and told me I must 
watch the flocks of this country, of which He was 
Shepherd ; that on this day, He chose me for His 
little Shepherdess, giving me the Mysteries of His 
most holy Life as an estate, and His Divine 
Wounds at the source whence I must obtain nour¬ 
ishment for His sheep ; also, that He gave Himself 
to me as a mine of gold, wdierewith to pay the debts 
our country owes the Justice of His Eternal Father, 
permitting me to apply to this end the great treasures 
of His Sacred Heart. Our Lord has likewise made 
me understand, that I must watch His flocks faith¬ 
fully, and not imitate the slothful servant of the 
Gospel, who buried his talent; that one day He 
would exact a rigorous account from me, and that it 
was very easy to draw from the mine of gold He 
has opened by His labors and sufferings. I believe 
our Lord ardently desires to find some one whose 


THE ARCHBISHOP. 


181 


continual and earnest supplications will constrain 
Him to grant mercy to France.” 

During this interval the Sister endured great suf¬ 
ferings. As though to accomplish through the 
cross, His work in her, God placed no limits to the 
violence of her interior trials ; at times, darkness 
entirely shrouded her intelligence, and in the face 
of her great and arduous mission, there remained to 
her only the consciousness of her weakness. 

“This Work,” said she (June 6, 1844), “is within 
me, as a consuming fire, causing me to suffer little 
or much, according as it pleases God. In all my 
prayers, I beg our Lord to deign save France,—to 
establish in all her cities His Work of the Repara¬ 
tion and to raise up apostolic men for this end. 
Thou seest, my sweet Jesus, that I, a poor, un¬ 
worthy creature can do nothing ; vouchsafe then to 
enlighten with all that I suffer, the heart of him 
who can render Thee this service ! ” 

Once, our Lord made her sensible of His Presence, 
by lifting up her soul, and absorbing it within Him¬ 
self for nearly two hours. “ Whilst in this delightful 
state,” says the Sister, “ I seemed to hear His sweet 
voice saying as near as I can remember, ‘ My child, 
courage and confidence ! Courage and confidence ! 
engrave these words upon your heart. Oh ! if you 
but knew, what merit your soul acquires in sustain¬ 
ing these trials, you would thank Me for having 
given them. I come now to visit you, but not to 
remain with you in a sensible manner. You will 
drink the chalice, but be consoled, for although you 
see me not, I will be very near you; My Hands 
will hold it whilst you drain its bitter dregs ; this 
16 


182 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


trial passed, you will taste of My consolations ; you 
have indeed merited these sufferings by your infi¬ 
delities; yet, it is in love, not vengeance, I thus 
afflict you/ 1 now took the liberty of asking our 
Lord if the crown I was making to glorify His 
Name, and honor the Mysteries of His Life were 
agreeable to His Heart, and He answered : * What¬ 
ever one does for My Glory is to me a delicious 
repast/ He urged me to practice this exercise when 
hindered from making mental prayer.” 

A new phase was about to appear in the exterior 
life of Sister Saint-Pierre. The Carmelites had just 
removed from their ancient and cherished abode 
already mentioned, which had been to them the 
worthy cradle of their first Foundation in 1608. 
We quote the following on this subject from their 
Annals : 

“ Towards the end of the year 1843, having suc¬ 
ceeded in making a fair bargain with our purchasers, 
we sold our old monastery, with the express clause 
in the terms of agreement, that for twenty years the 
church, of which only the bare walls were left, would 
not be used for any purpose contrary to the sanctity 
of its original destination. 

“ These negotiations concluded, the new work 
must be begun at once, and from the very inception. 
The plan of a monastery was drawn, and the 
Superiors endeavored to have it conform, as far as 
the grounds and means allowed, to the ceremonial 
and customs of the Order, providing especially for 
the proper distribution of the various departments, 
and whatever might facilitate the practice of our 
holy observances. Our Reverend Mother, Marie of 


THE ARCHBISHOP. 


183 


the Incarnation, then in office, displayed, as also our 
venerated Superior, Reverend Pierre Aileron, a zeal 
and devotedness worthy of our deepest gratitude, 
and God, in pouring abundant blessings upon their 
labors, gave unquestionable proof of His having 
indeed chosen them for this work.” 

As we have already mentioned, a very convenient 
location on Ursuline street, back of the walls of the 
archiépiscopal residence, had been purchased for the 
site of the projected monastery, and in the month of 
September, 1844, Mgr. Morlot solemnly blessed the 
corner-stone. 

Until the new building was ready to receive them, 
the Carmelites for two years had to remain in a 
secular dwelling, without either enclosure or grat¬ 
ings.* Though handsome externally, and well 
located, it was wholly inadequate and unsuitable to its 
present purposes,—the abode of a cloistered religious 
Order—hence, the Carmelites endured here all man¬ 
ner of inconveniences. 

The absence of enclosure was one of their greatest 
privations. Under these circumstances, each Car¬ 
melite bears, as it were, her enclosure about her ; a 
thick black veil envelops her person from the head 
to the knees, scarcely permitting her to breathe or 
act freely. Such was the almost habitual state of 
Sister Saint-Pierre during these two years, her posi- 


*This house, situated in the Place Grégoire, back of the Cathe¬ 
dral, and facing the Seminary, is at present the property of the 
Rev. Canon Alligret, who, out of reverence for the memory of 
Sister Saint-Pierre, and the sojourn of the Carmelites, has 
erected in the spot formerly occupied by their chapel, an ora¬ 
tory of the Holy Face. 


184 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


tion of turn-Sister obliging her to have direct inter¬ 
course with persons of the world, either to receive 
their messages, or transmit those from the interior 
of the convent. Let us now listen to her ingenuous 
complaints on this subject : 

“ Our Lord had at this time a great trial in store 
for me. Having been obliged to move from the 
convent where I had made my Vows, and wherein, 
through His divine and merciful liberality, I had 
been filled with graces, I found myself in a secular 
dwelling, consequently without gratings ; and as my 
office was still that of turn-Sister, which brought 
me constantly in contact with persons from without, 
I became greatly afflicted thereat. Compelled to 
remain for nearly two years in this parlor, and see 
the numbers of persons who came there, some to 
recommend their sick to our prayers, some to solicit 
prayers for the conversion of sinners in whom they 
were interested, others to be consoled in their sor¬ 
rows, and indeed, many through mere idle curiosity, 
I feared losing the spirit of silence and recollection 
for which I had great attraction, so I said to myself : 
‘Alas ! how can I hear the voice of my Saviour in 
such a place ?* I went to our Reverend Mother 
and manifested to her all the repugnance I felt to 
my position ; I would have been very glad had she 
relieved me from this office, or, at least, given me a 
companion to share the duties with me; but, not¬ 
withstanding her very great charity, she judged 
proper that I should remain there without an 
assistant. 

“ To lessen the number of these visits, I strove to 
make those who came understand that it was the 


THE ARCHBISHOP. 


185 


mission of a Carmelite to speak much to God in 
solitude, and very little to the world; that they 
should make known their sorrows and seek consola¬ 
tion at other religious houses not obliged to such 
strict seclusion as ourselves, and that we would pray 
for their intentions ; but all in vain did I strive, 
my arguments were useless. Even now I cannot 
help laughing, when I remember a good woman 
who was determined to bring her daughter to me 
( that I would advise her to marry/ she said. As I 
told her positively that I could not, no doubt she 
consulted someone more capable than myself of giv¬ 
ing advice on this subject. 

“ Our good Saviour, for some time, allowed me 
to feel my weakness and this extreme repugnance 
for my new position ; but one day, He had the good¬ 
ness to come and console me in the interior of my 
soul. He made me understand that I must not be 
troubled, because the duties of my office brought 
me in direct contact with my neighbor ; moreover, 
that I was to receive those persons in the same 
spirit of charity with which He had received all 
who approached Him when He journeyed through 
the cities of Judea ; at the same time, promising me, 
that this apparently distracting occupation would in 
no wise hinder my spiritual progress, but, on the 
contrary, would tend to the promotion of His glory.” 

Six months passed, during which all communica¬ 
tions from our Lord on the subject of the Repara¬ 
tion remained suspended,—and Sister Saint-Pierre 
followed the thorny path of severe interior trials. 
She seemed almost wavering in her mission, when 
the Lord favored her with new lights. 

16 * 


186 LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 

“ He has made me understand,” says she, “ that 
mankind are incapable of comprehending the gross 
insult offered to God by blasphemy ; * that it pierces 
His Heart, and makes Him like unto another 
Lazarus, covered with sores ; He invited me to imi¬ 
tate the dogs that consoled poor Lazarus by licking 
his ulcers ; and He told me I would render Him a 
great service in thus employing my tongue to daily 
glorify the Most Holy Name of God despised and 
blasphemed by sinners ; that I must do so without 
regard to any interior consolation the devotion 
might yield me, it should be sufficient for me to 
know that I thus healed His Divine Wounds, and 
afforded Him a signal gratification. It seemed to 
me He also said, ‘ Strive with all your might for 
the establishment of this Work; I will give you My 
merits to obtain it from My Father; ask in My 
Name, and it shall be granted you/ ” 

Here ends the first account given by Sister Saint- 
Pierre relative of events, which have a general bear¬ 
ing upon the Work of the Reparation ; she concludes 
by the following declaration. 

“In the Sacred Heart of Jesus I found this Work ; 
likewise, in His Divine Heart burning with zeal for 


*St. Alphonsus de Liguori says, “Blasphemy, under any of 
the numerous forms it assumes in our day, is, in a very especial 
manner, an abomination before God. It is the most horrible of 
all sins, and ordinarily unpardonable, for being high treason 
against the divine Majesty, directly attacking God, He seldom 
pardons it.” (Tannoya life of St. Alphonsus, lib. IV, ch. XV.) 
In his last days, the holy Doctor speaking of Prance, said: 
“ Blasphemy brings malediction upon the earth. Poor France ! 
I pity thee, and I pity so many innocent souls who will share 
in thy disgrace.” (Ibid., ch. XXIV.) 


THE ARCHBISHOP. 


187 


the glory of His Father do I now place it, through 
the hands of the most Blessed Virgin and the 
glorious St. Joseph ;—under the protection of the 
Angels and Saints,—imploring mercy from the 
Divine Majesty Who deigns to make use of so 
unworthy an instrument as myself. I declare that 
it is I, Sister Marie de Saint-Pierre of the Holy 
Family, unworthy Carmelite, who received these 
revelations upon the Work of Reparation of Blas¬ 
phemy, and who write them through obedience to 
my Superiors, for the greater glory of God, and 
also to relieve my conscience, for I tremble at sight 
of the mission our Lord has imposed on me. The 
fulfilment of His designs herein revealed, will cer¬ 
tainly save many souls. I also declare that I have 
spoken in the truth and simplicity of my soul, and 
I would be willing to take oath thereof, were it 
necessary. Now, I think it useless to keep these 
letters which I have most carefully transcribed, 
wherefore, I am going to burn them.” 

The following incident connected with this period 
of the Work of the Reparation is told by the Sister 
herself : “ An ecclesiastic who had some knowledge 
of it, came one day to ask our prayers for the 
intention of obtaining two spiritual favors, one for 
a brother priest, one for himself, both being a 
question of saving the souls and reputation of two 
persons in whom they were interested.” He said to 
our holy Carmelite, “I already believe in the Work 
our Lord has confided to your care, but in order to 
be assured of it, ask Him these two graces as a 
token of its Divine origin. If He grants them, 
I promise you, that we will devote ourselves to 


188 LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 

the propagation of it.” “ Thinking that Jesus 
might be glorified hereby,” continues the Sister, 
“I accepted the clergyman’s proposition, and told 
him I would fervently recommend his intentions 
to our Lord, in the spirit of obedience to the 
mission with which He had entrusted me, because 
whenever I asked Him graces in this manner, I 
more readily obtained them. He expressed his 
approval and left. Immediately, I went before the 
Blessed Sacrament to pray this good Saviour to 
defend His cause for the glory of His Name, and 
mercifully deign to grant these two clergymen the 
object of their petitions, assuring Him, that they 
would henceforth be, as they had promised, the 
defenders of His Name blasphemed by sinners. In 
fine, I exhausted all my little stock of eloquence to 
touch the Divine Heart, and I began a Novena for 
these two priests’ intentions. 

a Our Lord gave, as was asked, proof of the 
Divine character of His Work; that same evening, 
the ecclesiastic who had spoken to me received the 
desired favor, and the other obtained his a little 
later. He told us that the Lord had granted his 
wishes beyond all expectations, and that the sad 
affair in question had redounded to the glory of 
God, and the happiness of those at first so afflicted.” * 


Document A, p. 86. 


CHAPTER XL 


THE LITTLE GOSPEL. 


* When Jesus was named, then was Satan disarmed ! ” (Sup¬ 
plement to the Little Gospel ). 

After Mgr. Morlot’s decisions in the negative as to 
the canonical establishment of the Work of the Repa- 
. ration, the revelations made to Marie de Saint-Pierre 
concerning it ceased for a while, and during this in¬ 
terval, it was our Lord’s pleasure to console His ser¬ 
vant, either by attracting her anew to the Mysteries 
of His Passion, and of His Holy Name, or by awak¬ 
ening her zeal for the deliverance of certain souls in 
Purgatory. One of these seems to have especially 
claimed the spiritual alms of her holy prayers. In 
reading the following account, given by herself, we 
cannot fail to be edified at the tender, holy ardor 
with which she devoted her prayers and penances to 
the relief of those departed souls, who seemed in 
greatest need of them. 

The sudden and frightful death of the Duke of 
Orleans,* eldest son and presumptive heir of King 

* Ferdinand Philippe Louis Charles Henry, Duke of Orleans, 
son of Louis Philippe, king of France, born 1810, and died in 
1842, by being pitched from his carriage. 


189 


190 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


Louis-Philippe, had. just cast a deep gloom over 
all France. A spirited horse attached to his car¬ 
riage having run off, the Duke was pitched out, and 
dashed against the ground with such violence, that 
he died almost instantly. The news spread like 
wild-fire, and even penetrated the precincts of our 
Carmel of Tours. Everywhere, it had made a pro¬ 
found impression, especially as the Duke had some 
years previously, in spite of the remonstrances of the 
Archbishop of Paris, and to the great scandal of 
Catholics, married a Protestant princess. For this 
reason many persons were inclined to regard his 
death as a chastisement from heaven. 

“ One Sunday,” writes the Sister, “ I was making 
my usual mental prayer ; no thoughts of the Duke 
of Orleans were in my mind ; I had indeed heard 
vaguely of the accident, but had never dreamed of 
praying for this poor prince since his death, when 
suddenly the memory of him came vividly before 
me. During the recitation of the Little Hours of 
the Divine Office, I was most profoundly impressed 
with the feeling that his soul was suffering in Pur¬ 
gatory, and needed succor. It seemed to me that the 
nearer I approached the Divine Heart of Jesus, the 
deeper became my emotion, and my utterance was at 
last so choked by tears, that I could with great diffi¬ 
culty recite the Office in Choir. I felt myself most 
strongly attracted to this suffering soul which the 
Lord desired to deliver from the flames. Having re¬ 
ceived Holy Communion for him, Jesus inspired me 
to offer also to His Eternal Father for this intention, 
all His infinite merits ; during my thanksgiving, it 
seemed to me that my soul met his in our Lord, 


THE LITTLE GOSPEL. 


191 


and I then said to him : 1 Poor prince ! what now 
remains to you of the world’s grandeur and riches? 
Behold ! you are, to-day, glad indeed to receive the 
benefit of an humble Carmelite’s Holy Communion ; 
remember me when you enter Heaven.’ Our Lord 
urged me to pray for him, and with such extraordi¬ 
nary charity, that it was even greater than had ever 
moved me for my nearest relatives. He suggested 
to me, to offer up for this soul’s relief all He had 
suffered when crowned with thorns and ridiculed as 
a mock King; and before a picture representing 
this stage of His Passion, I passed the rest of the 
morning praying for the prince. 

“ Three times that day I recited in the presence 
of the Blessed Sacrament, the six Paters , Aves and 
Gloria Patris, to gain the numberless Plenary and 
Partial Indulgences attached to these prayers in 
connection with the Blue Scapular, and which are 
applicable to the dead. Next morning, Monday, I 
was again inspired to receive Holy Communion for 
the same intention. This suffering soul seemed 
inseparably attached to mine, accompanying it every¬ 
where, and all the acts of mortification I performed 
were for its repose.”* 

March 20, the Sister writes thus to the Mother 
Prioress : 

“As I have reached the end of the fortnight, 
during which you allowed me to abandon myself 
into our Lord’s hands, to suffer whatever He judged 
proper, making an offering of it in behalf of the 
suffering soul in Purgatory now absorbing my 


Especial Document, p. 4. 


192 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


attention, permit me to give you an account of all 
that has taken place in my interior, from the 26th 
of February to the 19th of March. 

“ I will say in all simplicity, that my soul felt 
for this poor prince a tenderness akin to that which 
urges a mother to be ever seeking remedies for a 
sick child. Day and night, have my thoughts been 
occupied with the alleviation of its sufferings; at 
last, I prayed my holy Guardian Angel never to 
let me lose sight of it, until it had entered Heaven ; 
and I believe he has charitably granted my request, 
for supernatural feelings have incessantly prompted 
me to offer all my actions for its deliverance. Every 
Communion, except one, which duty required me to 
give a departed Sister, and all the prayers I recited, 
likewise, the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, many times 
the Stations of the Cross, and the penances you have 
allowed me to perform were the suffrages I had the 
consolation of presenting God in behalf of this soul. 
Though you have seen my face swollen, I must say 
that my corporal sufferings were slight, and I was 
deeply grieved that they were; it was upon my soul 
our Lord imprinted the seal of suffering. To that 
sweet union and interior peace I had enjoyed, suc¬ 
ceeded a terrible storm; our Lord hid Himself, 
making me thus feel most keenly my misery and 
unworthiness,—darkness indeed followed light; yet, 
though the Divine Master was striking me with 
one hand, He sustained me with the other, and 
gave me courage to say to Him, ‘ My God only pre¬ 
serve me from offending Thee herein, and willingly 
do I accept these trials, that through them, this 
poor soul may the sooner enter into bliss and 


THE LITTLE GOSPEL. 193 

glorify Thee for me ! Behold ! Lord, this is all I 
desire/ 

“The Feast of our holy Father, St. Joseph, was 
approaching; I made a Novena in preparation for 
this great solemnity, supplicating the glorious Saint 
to obtain of God thereon this soul’s deliverance, 
and promising to continue the penances I had been 
permitted to perform. On the eve of the Feast, my 
emotion was almost overpowering ; through the 
ardor of my desire I was in inexpressible torment. 
I could scarcely take my food, and with difficulty 
could I restrain my tears; my soul was wounded, 
but truly by a sentiment wholly supernatural, for 
I had not even known the prince. Ah ! if ever I 
felt the privation my Vow of Poverty imposes it 
was then, for most assuredly, any little funds in my 
possession would have been appropriated to Masses 
for him; but a consoling thought came to mind; 
I said to myself, ‘Everything have I given my 
Heavenly Spouse, consequently, He has reciprocally 
given Himself to me; hence, His goods are mine’ 
Then, full of confidence, I offered the Eternal 
Father all the treasures of His Divine Son, to supply 
the deficiencies of my poverty, and I united my 
intention with that of every priest who was cele¬ 
brating the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. 

. “Next day, March 19, our Lord made me under¬ 
stand, that I must still continue my charity in 
behalf of this suffering soul, by offering for him the 
Holy Communion I was about to receive, and thus 
gain for him the Indulgence applicable to the dead. 
I assented to this, somewhat reluctantly, for on this 
great Feast of our holy Order. I had intended 
17 


194 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


applying to my own soul, my own especial needs, 
the benefit of the Indulgence ; but since our Lord 
wished otherwise, I submitted to His holy Will, and 
did as He had inspired me, interceding for the 
prince with all the powers of my soul and all the 
affections of my heart. Since that day, my Rev¬ 
erend Mother, I am no longer troubled, the burden 
seems lifted from me, and I can say no prayers for 
him, except the Laudate. Hence, I believe that my 
feeble services, united with the fervent prayers 
of our Sisters have relieved him. 

“ The most Blessed Virgin has doubtless obtained 
his salvation, and our glorious Father St. Joseph 
his entrance into Heaven, for I hope, and my soul 
has the interior confidence, that on the Feast of this 
great Saint, he was delivered from Purgatory. 
God, however, has given me no supernatural assur¬ 
ance of this; I adore His designs without wishing 
to penetrate them, for I am most unworthy of such 
a grace. The prince, as is well known, died very 
suddenly by a terrible accident, and without the 
consoling aids of our Holy Religion, but an act of 
sincere contrition may have obtained his salvation, 
the mercy of God surpassing all His works.” 

Three years later, it was revealed to Sister Saint- 
Pierre, that this soul, the object of such fervent 
prayers, had been delivered from the purging flames. 
On the 26th of April, 1846, she writes thus : 

“After Holy Communion, our Lord said to me, 
‘Allow thyself to follow the inspirations of grace/ 
I obeyed, and this Divine Saviour began to manifest 
Himself to me. But oh ! what shall I now say ? 
O infinite goodness of my God ! assist me to speak, 


THE LITTLE GOSPEL. 


195 


in order that the knowledge and love of Thee be 
thereby increased upon earth ! Suddenly, our Lord 
said to me : ‘ Behold him for whom you so fervently 
prayed. I bring him to you that he may thank you 
for all your charity towards his soul. Behold the 
excess of My mercy in his regard ; had I left him 
upon earth, he would have enjoyed the ambition of 
encircling his brow with a perishable terrestrial 
crown, whilst now in Heaven, I have given him an 
immortal crown of glory.’ I beheld, by an intellec¬ 
tual vision, this soul at the side of Jesus, and as he 
turned towards me, I said : ‘Ah ! it is our Lord you 
must thank, for I am nothing ; it was His merits I 
offered God.’ The soul then replied : ‘ When brought 
before the judgment seat of God, I was covered with 
the infinite merits of Jesus Christ ; it is to the Blessed 
Virgin I owe my. salvation, and to St. Joseph’s 
assistance my deliverance from Purgatory ! ‘ O 

most happy soul ! ’ I said, ‘ pray for France, 
pray for me;’ and in a transport of gratitude at 
thoughts of God’s infinite mercy, I repeated, ‘ Happy 
soul, pray for me, together let us prostrate ourselves 
at the feet of our Lord Jesus Christ ; aid me to ren¬ 
der Him worthy homage.’ Our Lord then said to 
me: ‘Now this soul will pray for you;’ and I 
repeated, ‘ pray for me ! But, how,’ asked I, ‘ shall 
I henceforth invoke you?’ The soul answered, 
‘ My name is Ferdinand , call me Ferdinand , I assure 
you I was called Ferdinand .’ It seemed to me that 
he repeated his name several times, as if to prove 
thereby the truth of what I saw, for I did not know 
the prince’s name. He added : ‘ I reign now with 
Jesus Christ, I am crowned in heaven.’ I contin- 


196 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


ued : ( God’s goodness is very great, I know, yet, I 
did not dare to think you had already entered into 
eternal glory, but now I perceive that this was 
through a special act of Divine mercy.’ I was 
touched to the very depths at all that I saw, heard 
and understood ; the excess of Divine charity towards 
this soul almost transported me. I was unable to 
restrain my tears and sobs. 

“ Whilst plunged in this delightful state, the turn- 
bell rang, and I left our Lord in obedience to the 
call of duty. Desirous of assuring myself that what 
had just taken place was not an illusion, I asked one 
of the Sisters whom I met, and who must know the 
name of the aforesaid prince, what it was. ‘ He was 
called Ferdinand,’ she replied. This answer pro¬ 
duced a strong impression upon me, stamping, as it 
did, the seal of truth upon what I had just experi¬ 
enced ; moreover, the Divine operation in my soul 
on this occasion, was of the strongest kind.” * 

This communication, like all the preceding ones, 
was laid before Mgr. Morlot. The Prelate was so 
fully impressed with the evidences of its super¬ 
natural character, that he thought proper to write 

* Although this event is connected with the political ques¬ 
tions of the past, we have thought proper to give it in detail, 
not even withholding the real names. The pure intention 
of our Carmelite will justify us, in the eyes of our readers, 
for having done so. Moreover, the incident contains a con¬ 
soling reflection, which should escape the observation of no 
one—that in the most distressing accidents of life, seemingly' 
chastisements of Divine Justice upon families and empires, is 
there often, to the salvation of individuals, an unsuspected mer¬ 
ciful side which proves the infinite goodness of God, and-the 
ways of His Providence supremely adorable. 


THE LITTLE GOSPEL. 


197 


an account of it to the deceased Duke’s pious mother, 
Queen Amelie, who, as everyone knew, was in the 
deepest affliction concerning her son’s eternal wel¬ 
fare. 

We can easily understand what precious and holy 
consolation, the Archbishop’s thoughtful kindness 
imparted to the afflicted heart of this Christian 
mother.* 

This extraordinary fact just related of the’Car¬ 
melite of Tours is not without precedent in the 
annals of piety. We have a somewhat similar 
account of a soul being delivered from Purgatory, 
through the prayers and sufferings of one of the 
first daughters of the Visitation, Sister Marie- 
Denise de Martignat. The circumstances are re¬ 
lated with minute detail in the life of this holy nun, 
written by Mother de Chaugy. “ One dav, our Lord 
brought the Sister to the brink of Purgatory, and 
showed her the soul of a great prince, whose death 
had caused universal sorrow and regret. In life, he 
had been most wealthy and powerful, but having 
laid up very few good works he was now poor 
indeed, for these form the only wealth of the life to 
come; his soul was in Purgatory suffering more 
than human language could express. Our Lord 
said to the Sister, < My daughter, you prayed much 

* The poor Quéen in the depths of her maternal affliction, 
had consulted the Rev. Father Ravignan, S. J., and we know 
that this holy Religious consoled her, in words similar to those 
of Sister Saint-Pierre,—“that the Prince, might at the last 
moment have made an act of perfect contrition, and that 
we must hope everything for the best from God’s infinite 
Mercy.” 


17 * 


198 LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 

for the salvation of this soul, behold him now, and 
still pray/ ” f 

This prince had been killed in a duel; “but,” 
explains the Sister, “by a marvel of grace and 
Divine Mercy, he was given an instant in which to 
make an act of perfect contrition for his sins, which 
he did ; and hence, instead of being plunged into 
Hell, which he had but too well merited, he was in 
Purgatory, condemned to expiate his offences by 
long years of suffering.” 

Denise de Martignat offered herself on earth as a 
sacrifice, to cancel thereby such part of his debt 
as lay within her power. Thenceforth, she was 
afflicted with the strangest maladies, and endured 
all manner of cruel anguish. Several times, the 
soul of the deceased prince appeared to her, thank¬ 
ing and encouraging her, and begging her to con¬ 
tinue her charitable services of suffering and prayer. 

A short time before her death, it was revealed to 
the servant of God, that this prince’s soul was 
greatly relieved ; but, less fortunate than Marie de 
Saint-Pierre, she never knew positively the moment 
of his happy deliverance. 

Another holy practice was to serve as food for 
that ever active and ingenious zeal animating our 
dear Sister for the salvation of souls. The Car¬ 
melites still occupied the house we have already 
mentioned, on St. Grégoire Place, their neAV monas¬ 
tery not yet being in readiness to receive them. 
Marie de Saint-Pierre was here so besieged by per- 

t Vie de sept religieuses de la Visitation, by Rev. Mother de 
Chaugy, Marie-Denise de Martignat, Ch. XV, p. 168. 


THE LITTLE GOSPEL. 


199 


sons desirous of receiving consolation or advice, 
that she found it a task to defend herself against 
their pious importunities, and preserve the spirit of 
recollection. 

“ When these good people,” says she, “ saw that 
the little Bretonne, simple like themselves, per¬ 
fectly understood their dialect and their troubles, 
and tried to soothe them by the voice of religion, 
they went away contented ; but, only to return the 
sooner, bringing with them neighbors who also 
.sought consolation. Notwithstanding my charity 
for them, I excused myself from receiving their 
visits, wishing ever to preserve the spirit of silence 
enjoined by our holy vocation. Our Lord, seeing 
all this, gave me a means of satisfying them, and 
furthermore, of alleviating their maladies, by inspir¬ 
ing me with the devotion of the Gospel of the Cir¬ 
cumcision. 

“ Here is what I conceive of this practice (wear¬ 
ing the Gospel of the Circumcision), from what has 
been communicated to me. The demon uses all 
possible means to snatch from our Lord Jesus 
Christ the inheritance purchased by the Cross, and 
he is ever seeking to rob this Good Shepherd of the 
lambs obtained at so great a price. To put this 
ravishing wolf to flight, and keep him at a distance 
from the fold, Jesus has made known to me, that 
He wishes His sheep marked with His Holy Name, 
by bearing upon their person the Gospel, announc¬ 
ing to all nations, that the Incarnate Word was 
called Jesus. This amiable Saviour has acquainted 
me with the virtue of His Sacred Name ;—that It 
would drive away the demon, and, that all thus 


200 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


placing themselves under Its especial protection 
would receive great graces. He also told me to put 
at the end of this little Gospel, some words recalling 
His victory over Satan, when taking, for love of us, 
the Name of Jesus. The devotion at once received 
the approbation of my Superiors ; later, their charity 
induced them to have copies of the Gospel of the 
Circumcision printed. This printed sheet, contain¬ 
ing likewise the initials of His Adorable Name and 
a picture of the Holy Infant Jesus, folded and 
enclosed in a little square case marked upon the 
outside with a cross and the Sacred Heart, was to 
be worn on the person in the same way as a medal.” 
This practice received also the approbation of a 
Vicar-General,* as being in perfect conformity to 
the spirit of the Church, for we learn from its early 
history, that the first Christians were in the habit of 
wearing the holy Gospel about them. 

“ Our Lord made known to me that these objects 
of piety must not be sold, but given away in His 
Name, so as to be within reach of all the faith¬ 
ful ; that He asked this alms of the Community for 
His greater glory, and that He would recompense 
their charity herein, by lending His aid to the 
necessities of bur house. Our worthy Superiors 
gave me the means of satisfying this desire of the 
Infant Jesus. Very soon, numbers wore this Gospel 
with devotion, and the Holy Child Jesus did not 
fail to recompense their piety by especial graces, f 
I was kept busy preparing these little Gospels, and 

* This was only a verbal approbation. Fifteen days after the 
Sister’s death, M. Dupont obtained the official approbation. 

f Document G, p. 1. 


THE LITTLE GOSPEL. 


201 


though I worked most assiduously thereat, I found 
myself unable to satisfy the demand for them. Our 
dear Sisters now offered to help me. I was enchanted 
with the new employment, all to the profit and glory 
of the Holy Child. I prepared a beautiful little 
Gospel for Him and hung it around the neck of His 
statue. He had told me not to sell these objects, 
but as many rich persons wished to make some 
return for them, I put a purse in the hands of my 
little King, and we would say to these individuals, 
‘ Give your offerings to Jesus, they will help buy 
Hitn swaddling clothes.’ These alms this Adorable 
Child repaid a hundred fold, by the signal graces 
He granted the souls of the donors. He collected 
in His little purse quite a large sum. Then, our 
Reverend Mother purchased swaddling clothes for 
Jesus,—that is, linen for corporals; the Commu¬ 
nity prepared them for use, and they were presented, 
with great ceremony, to the Holy Child, on His 
Feast of the Most Blessed Sacrament, and during 
the octave of Corpus Christi, distributed among the 
poor parishes of the archdiocese. Part of this money 
was also spent upon a trousseau for a poor little new¬ 
born babe, in whose poverty we beheld that of the 
Infant Jesus at His birth.” 

The good Sister also tells us that our Lord asked 
of the Community as an alms, the wide spread dis¬ 
tribution of these Gospels, and that the following 
words be inscribed at the end of the sheet : 

“When Jesus was named,— 

Then was Satan disarmed ! ” 


202 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


“ He made me understand,” says she, “ with what 
glory it covers Him to celebrate His victory in these 
words, for they cause the demon to tremble with 
rage ;—that He will bless all who wear this Gospel, 
and will defend them against the attacks of Satan.” 

The Saviour afterwards told her that as the graces 
attached to this devotion were derived from His 
Sacred Heart, the little case containing the Gospel 
should bear on the outside the image of that Sacred 
Heart, and also the instruments of His Passion, just 
as a seal is affixed upon a reliquary in testimony of 
the authenticity of its enclosed relics. In honor of 
the five letters forming the Name' of Jesus, and 
through the virtue of His Five Wounds, He prom¬ 
ises to grant those who embrace this devotion five 
especial graces : 

First.—Preservation from lightning ; 

Secondly.—Grace to escape the snares and malice 
of the demon ; 

Thirdly.—That He will preserve them from a 
sudden or unprovided death ; 

Fourthly.—He will facilitate their progress in the 
paths of virtue and piety ; 

Fifthly.—He will grant them final perseverance. 

As this last favor seemed to the pious Carmelite 
very exceptional, she was reassured by the follow¬ 
ing words of Holy Scripture, which immediately 
suggested themselves, “ Whosoever shall call upon 
the Name of the Lord shall be saved.” * 

It was not enjoined that these little Gospels be 
given any especial or formal blessing, except that 


* Rom. x, 13. 


THE LITTLE GOSPEL. 


203 


imparted by the addition of a piece of palm, blessed 
on Palm Sunday, in memory of the triumphant 
entry of the Saviour into the city of Jerusalem. 

“ When I was seeking means to defray these ex¬ 
penses,” says she, (this refers to the early days of the 
devotion) “ our Lord commanded me to address 
myself to His servant, M. Dupont, telling Him that 
the Infant Jesus asked this charity of him as the 
tithe of the possessions He had given him, also, that 
it would be an offering very agreeable to Him. 
‘ Lord, wilt Thou not promise him some favor in 
return, or, at least, some graces for his family ? , said 
I. Our Lord answered , < His ardent, generous love 
will prompt him to render Me this service, without 
My making him promises by way of inducement, in 
return for which disinterested love I will the more 
bounteously recompense him in heaven; for your¬ 
self, do you deliver My message as My little ser¬ 
vant ; fear not to ask this for Me, and your merit 
will be the same as though you did the work.” 

We can well understand the eagerness with which 
M. Dupont responded to her appeal, in this, as in all 
his other works of charity and piety, already so well 
known in the city of Tours, proving himself worthy 
of the praise our Lord had been pleased to bestow 
upon his generous love, and worthy also of the pious 
regard the good Sister entertained for him and his 
family. 

We read, in his Life,* that this fervent layman, 
with the candor and simplicity characteristic of his 
faith, wijlingly associated himself to the cherished 

*T. I, p. 155. 


204 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


devotions of the Carmelite virgin, especially this, 
whose end was to extend the honor of the Holy 
Infant Jesus. Before the printing of the sheets, he 
made numberless copies of her little Gospel with his 
own hand, and w*as very zealous in circulating them 
among the faithful, deeming himself happy in doing 
so, and fully recompensed by the prayers Sister Saint- 
Pierre promised him for his daughter Henrietta, then 
on the eve of making her First Communion. 

On the Feast of the Most Blessed Trinity, the 
Saviour communicated himself anew to His servant, 
and urged her to propagate this devotion. 

“The following,” says she, “are the words, or 
very nearly the words, our Lord made me hear: 
‘My daughter, do not be afflicted, if the labor of 
preparing these little Gospels interferes with your 
enjoying My Presence as you would wish ; it is far 
better to sacrifice consolations to this which pre¬ 
vents My being offended. I design to save souls 
by this devotion,—it has already prevented Several 
sins/ ” 

Addressing the Mother Prioress, the Sister adds : 
“ Our Lord also told me, that with the money received 
through the little Gospels, He desired you to have 
fifty Masses offered for His greater glory, and the 
salvation of souls ; and that if sufficient remain after 
so doing, to defray the expense of a new edition of 
the Prayers of the Peparation, I ought to be con¬ 
vinced that there was no illusion on my part, and 
to recognize it as a certain sign that He had com¬ 
municated Himself to my soul. 

“ You know,” she continues, “ that I no longer 
thought of soliciting the reprinting of these Prayers 


THE LITTLE GOSPEL. 


205 


of the Reparation, as, according to his Grace’s opin¬ 
ion, they would not be readily understood ; but, 
to-day, our Lord asks them for devout souls, 
through whose recitation of them, they may be 
the means of drawing down His mercy upon France, 
appeasing His anger, and confounding the wicked. 
I abandon these things to your wisdom, my Rever¬ 
end Mother ; I seek only the accomplishment of the 
Holy Will of God.” 

Marvellous graces of all kinds soon attested the 
Divine origin of this humble and well-grounded 
devotion. We transcribe literally the following 
facts, which Sister Saint-Pierre has carefully regis¬ 
tered : 

“ At a time conscripts were being drawn for the 
army, several young men, yielding to the solicita¬ 
tions of their anxious mothers whose main support 
they were, consented to wear the little Gospels, with 
the intention of escaping conscription, and their 
names were not drawn. A young person who was 
a source of great grief to her good parents, by 
reason of her terrible fits of passion, in which she 
would treat them most abusively, was induced to 
wear the little Gospel ;—the mere act was sufficient 
to banish the demon, and bring her to a knowledge 
©f her misconduct ; for she soon asked pardon of her 
parents and approached the Sacraments. A har¬ 
dened sinner, who in his last hours had stubbornly 
refused to receive the consolations of religion, was 
converted through the medium of the little Gospel. 
His worthy pastor, disconsolate at seeing this lamb 
of his fold about to become the prey of the infernal 
wolf, caused the little Gospel to be placed at the 
18 


206 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


foot of the dying man’s bed. He was immediately 
touched by grace, asked for the Sacraments and 
died in the most edifying dispositions. Another, 
who, for many years had not attended to his relig¬ 
ious duties, was likewise converted by wearing the 
little Gospel, and reciting the prayers attached 
thereto. From the moment he put it on, grace 
began to urge his return to God ; for several months 
he resisted the inspiration, but, finally, yielding to 
the virtue of the Holy Name of Jesus, he threw 
himself at the feet of a confessor, and his perfect 
conversion has filled with joy those who sorrowed 
over his past misconduct. Divers persons have 
experienced in their maladies and corporal infirmi¬ 
ties, the marvelous effects of this salutary devotion. 
A little girl was in the last extremity from a vio¬ 
lent attack of fever, every symptom betokening 
approaching dissolution. Her uncle hung the 
little Gospel around her neck; for nine days the 
prayers attached to it were recited, and the child 
was entirely cured. 

“ A lady, for seven years, had been suffering from 
an ulcer in the throat, which, at times, prevented 
her taking any nourishment, and scarcely allowed 
her to receive Holy Communion. Numerous reme¬ 
dies had been administered, but without success. 
Having put on the little Gospel, her cure was so 
sudden as to astonish those who had been treating 
her, and she was constrained to make known to 
them the Divine remedy to which she had had 
recourse. 

“ Numbers of pregnant women have been deliv¬ 
ered almost miraculously, by the aid of the little 


THE LITTLE GOSPEL. 


207 


Gospel;—it is especially in their regard the most 
numerous of these extraordinary favors have been 
wrought. 

“ A little girl to whom we had given a Gospel of 
the Holy Name of Jesus, had a severe fall ; and on 
being raised from the ground, she was unable to move 
a limb. Her disconsolate parents fearing her back 
was broken, were about to send for a physician 
when the child cried out, ‘Do not go for the 
doctor, but give me my little relic, the good Jesus 
can cure me/ The Gospel was put around her 
neck; she immediately ceased crying and went to 
sleep, slept soundly, and awoke perfectly restored. 
The faith of this child was recompensed ; and all, 
who like her, believe, will likewise be rewarded. 

“Even missionaries in foreign lands have worn 
these Gospels of the Holy Name of Jesus. I will 
cite in conclusion the conversion of a great sinner. 

“On the 26th of December, 1845, a person in 
great anguish came to the convent to recommend to 
our prayers, a man at the point of death. ‘You 
cannot approach him on the subject of religion/ 
said she, ‘ or mention the Sacraments to him, for he 
is like a mad-man/ We gave her a little Gospel to 
be hung around his neck, and a printed sheet con¬ 
taining the prayers in honor of the Holy Name of 
Jesus. Full of faith and zeal, this good lady hav¬ 
ing learned that two men were to watch beside the 
dying man, begged them to steal their opportunity 
to put the little Gospel around his neck, and also to 
recite the prayers she gave them. They promised 
her to do so, and were faithful to their word. 
The dying man suddenly appeared very much 


208 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


changed, and quite calm. Seeing this, they pro¬ 
posed to send for a priest, to which he consented. 
He made his confession, received the Holy Viati¬ 
cum, and died the death of a Christian. 

“ Furious at beholding his prey escape, Satan 
determined to be revenged, and turned his rage 
against me. God alone knows what I suffered at 
the moment of that man’s death ; for two hours I 
seemed surrounded by a legion of demons. I was 
as if possessed ; it seemed to me I heard their horri¬ 
ble voices tempting me by the most seductive 
devices. The assaults of these infernal spirits were of 
the most violent kind ; never before had I endured 
such a combat ; but the Divine Spouse of my soul 
strengthened me by His power, and rendered 'me 
victorious. I threw myself at the feet of our Rev¬ 
erend Mother, who was frightened on beholding my 
pallid face, and I made known to her the anguish 
of my poor heart. She had the charity to console 
me, and immediately on receiving her blessing, I was 
delivered from these terrible assaults, and passed the 
night in the peace of the Lord.” 

Similar prodigies have taken place in our day. 
We will cite but one example which happened not 
long ago at Tours. A certain public character of 
another country, who had not only neglected the 
duties of his religion for a very long time, but had 
also conducted himself in such a way as to forfeit the 
respect and esteem of his fellow-men, was attacked 
by a mortal disease, and such of his friends as felt 
interested in his eternal salvation, beheld, with 
anguish, that he strenuously held himself aloof from 
anything like religion, and refused or evaded all 


THE LITTLE GOSPEL. 


209 


conversation on this subject. At last, a lady, after 
vainly endeavoring to turn his thoughts to God, and 
induce him to do something for his poor soul, 
adroitly slipped a little Gospel under his pillow, as 
she was about leaving the room. She had scarcely 
reached the door of the chamber when the sick man, 
calling her, said : ‘ Send me a priest, I do not wish 
to appear before God without settling my accounts/ 
From that moment he was thoroughly changed, and 
seemed to think of nothing, save the care of his 
immortal soul, and the atoning for his mis-spent 
time, by the sincerity and publicity of his repent¬ 
ance.” 

It was thus our Lord sustained His servant, by 
affording her occasions of making a trial, a prepara¬ 
tory exercise, as it were, of what was to be more fully 
accomplished through the great Work of the Repara¬ 
tion. By the little Gospel He glorified His own 
Name,—(the Blessed Name of Jesus !) He cured the 
sick, and converted sinners. By the Work of the 
Reparation He will glorify the Name of His Father, 
(that Name of the Eternal God whom blasphemers 
outrage),—the sick to be cured, the sinners to be saved 
thereby, being an entire nation, gangrened by im¬ 
piety,—a nation formerly the honor of Christian 
Europe, but which in its forgetfulness of Divine 
Laws, seems now running merrily down the road to 
perdition ; yet, for whose rescue has a daughter of 
Carmel been commissioned to open before it a path¬ 
way of mercy and salvation. 


18 * 


CHAPTER XII. 


THE HOLY FACE. 

“ I seek Veronicas to wipe and honor My Divine Face, which 
has few adorers.” ( Our Lord’s Words.) 

The spiritual joys Marie de Saint-Pierre received 
from the Holy Name of Jesus, somewhat consoled 
her for the delay in the establishment of the Work 
of the Reparation. Moreover, our Lord had not ' 
urged this matter since the 19th of November, 1844. 
But, on the 17th of June, 1845, the Divine Master 
returned to His great design, and encouraged His 
servant to address the Archbishop by word of 
mouth. No less than such authority was needed to 
oblige the humble, timid nun to speak directly to a 
Prince of the Church, for she must make known to 
him, on the part of God, that he now had to take • 
some decided step regarding the establishment of 
this Work, from which he had always seemed to 
recoil. “ What an interior martyrdom I then suf¬ 
fered,” writes she, “ God alone knows ; I could not 
eat, I could not live. The Celestial Spouse told me 
‘ not to fear speaking to Monseigneur , for He would 
accompany me, and would suggest what I must 
say.’ 


210 


THE HOLY FACE. 


211 


This Divine Saviour kept His promise, for I 
spoke to the worthy Prelate with all due respect, 
and yet with the simplicity of a child towards its 
father, being neither too much intimidated, nor yet 
lacking reverence. 

The Archbishop consented to visit the good Sis¬ 
ter, whose eminent virtues he truly appreciated. 
When she found herself in his presence, she knelt 
and kissed his feet ; then very humbly asking him 
to deign accomplish the Work so happily begun for 
the glory of the Holy Name of God, she explained 
to him “ how strongly our Lord had urged her 
to this.” The Prelate answered, “My child, I 
desire with all my heart to establish the Work, and 
give it the necessary and merited publicity, but this 
is a very difficult undertaking ;—if you knew, as I do, 
the obstacles! We have already much trouble in 
inducing our people to follow the ordinary practices 
of piety, what then would it be, were I to propose any 
new or additional devotions ? Might not this only 
excite the wicked to greater blasphemy ? Do you 
lay our difficulties before God, and pray very much 
for me; ask for new lights on the subject; and if 
t*he Lord enlighten you further, make it known to 
me.” He added, as though to tranquilize her 
respecting her interior dispositions, “ My child, your 
revelations do not bear the stamp of illusion, on 
the contrary, I recognize thereon the seal of God. 
We have made inquiries, and find that others have 
had the same inspirations as yourself concerning this 
Work of the Reparation ; it exists in Italy, and there 
is a movement towards it in several dioceses of 
France. It is my desire that pious souls practice 


212 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


this devotion ; and do you especially, my child, 
offer yourself to God as a victim ,—offer your pen¬ 
ances, and all your works in the spirit of Repara¬ 
tion, for the Church and for France ; unite yourself 
to our Lord in the Most Blessed Sacrament of the 
Altar, to render with Him honor, praise and glory 
to the Three Divine Persons of the Adorable 
Trinity; let us endeavor to arrest the arm of the 
Lord about to descend upon us; let us address 
ourselves to the holy Heart of Mary, offering the 
Eternal Father, through the hands of this august 
Mother, the Blood, sufferings and all the merits of 
His Son, that thus, such is my hope, we may appease 
the anger of God.” 

Then entering into pious details, the good Arch¬ 
bishop continued to converse familiarly with the 
Sister, giving her wise counsels, and advising her 
especially to glorify Jesus in the Most Blessed Sac¬ 
rament of the Altar. 

“ On Thursday,” said His Grace, “ make Him an 
act of Reparation ; on Friday, recite the Litany of 
the Passion ; and on Saturday, the Litany of the 
Blessed Virgin. When the Lord inspires you, my 
child, recite the Prayers of the Reparation ; but, I 
would prefer your saying the ordinary prayers.” 
The holy nun then said, “ that sometimes she feared 
her imagination might be mingled with the opera¬ 
tion of God,” but again the Prelate reassured her in 
these words: a Do not trouble yourself on this 
point; so long as you humbly submit all these 
things to the judgment of your Superiors, and 
keep within the path of obedience, you cannot go 
astray. 


THE HOLY FACE. 


213 


In conclusion, he said to her, “ I find nothing 
whatever objectionable in this; pray the Lord to 
enlighten me, and let us act solely for the advance¬ 
ment of His glory.* ” 

“These words,” she writes, “were as balm poured 
over my soul, and gave me great consolation, for I 
had never been able to obtain from my confessor 
any decided opinion concerning these interior mani¬ 
festations relative to the Work of the Reparation ; he 
had always answered my inquiries, by saying that 
my first Superior was the one who would be enlight¬ 
ened by the Holy Ghost to pronounce judgment ; 
and it was to his decisions, referring all, we should 
submit implicitly. Hence, I was now convinced 
of the Divine origin of these interior voices, and 
though His Grace gave me very little hope of his 
establishing the AYork, alleging the difficulties to be 
surmounted, yet this does not prevent my believing 
that God, in His own good time, will remove all 
obstacles and carry out His designs. Here is the 
way I reason on this point, and my conclusions: 
if the communications which, notwithstanding my 
unworthiness, I have received from God relative to 
the Work of the Reparation, are not illusory, as he 
who has been enlightened from on high to judge 
thereof tells me, most assuredly this Work will be 
established, for the word of God is creative and effi¬ 
cacious; if, on the contrary, His Grace had told 
they were illusions, I would immediately have 
abandoned all idea of it ; for, by the grace of God, 
I have always had more confidence in the voice 


* Document B, p. 45. 


214 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


of my Superiors than in the interior words, which I 
believed came from our Lord ; in such matters as 
these we may be mistaken, but not in the decisions 
of our Superiors, for faith will never deceive ; and 
the Divine Master has said of Superiors: ‘ Who 
hears you , hears Me.’ These words of Holy Writ 
have always impressed me. I have imprinted them 
upon my heart ; and relying upon the lesson they 
teach, I have received great graces through the 
medium of those having the guidance of my soul.” 

These wise reflections clearly reveal the soul of the 
humble and obedient daughter of Carmel, and they 
would justify, if necessary, the venerable Arch¬ 
bishop’s judgment regarding her. No one is igno¬ 
rant of the fact that in matters of revelation or 
celestial communications, of whatsoever nature they 
be, the touch-stone is humility, and the perfect sub¬ 
mission of heart and mind to the decisions of the 
Church, and the authority of those who represent 
her. Some time after, Mgr. Morlot was pleased to 
approve the Prayers of the Reparation, and having 
indicated a few corrections he deemed advisable, he 
granted permission to have them printed. “ But,” 
says the Sister, “ this printing was not done imme¬ 
diately ; meantime, our Lord made me understand 
that the mere printing of these Prayers, without 
appending thereto some explanation of the Work to 
be established, would not suffice ; that to excite the 
interest of the faithful in saying them, it was neces¬ 
sary to instruct them somewhat concerning the 
designs of His Will herein, and that when this had 
been done, we would see pious souls feast upon these 
Prayers of the Reparation, even with the same 


THE HOLY FACE. 


215 


avidity as bees upon flowers. He also made known 
to me that these Prayers would be very efficacious 
in the conversion of sinners.” 

She here refers to the pamphlet on blasphemy 
entitled Association of Prayers, compiled by the Rev. 
Jean Salmon. The author had added to it some re¬ 
flections on the profanation of the days consecrated 
to God, and at . the end of it were the Prayers of 
the Reparation. It also contained the Little Office 
of the Holy Name of God , composed by M. Dupont, 
with the assistance of the venerable Canons, Rev. M. 
Allmond and Rev. M. Pescherard, friends of Carmel. 
M. Dupont likewise contributed liberally towards 
defraying the expenses of the publication. 

“His Grace,” continues the Sister, “ approved 
this little book, which at once became very popular 
in all directions; and in this manner, more than 
twenty-five thousand Prayers of the Reparation were 
distributed. Tours received numberless applications 
for them, from persons in other cities, wishing to 
propagate this devotion to the Holy Name of God ; 
and everywhere were they recited with the greatest 
fervor. Our Lord revealed to me, ‘ that this new har¬ 
mony appeased His wrath, yet, He still desired the 
establishment of the Association as He had de¬ 
manded/ ” 

In order to comply with the Archbishop’s coun¬ 
sels, Sister Saint-Pierre began to pray the Divine 
Saviour that He would deign give her new lights 
regarding the establishment of His Work. But, it 
pleased the Divine Master once more to lead His 
servant through the path of interior trials. Her 
mind could dwell only upon the remembrance of 


216 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


her sins, and these she deemed the obstacles retarding 
the accomplishment of the Work of the Reparation ; 
she was, she thought, only the shadow of a Car¬ 
melite, instead of the vigorous spiritual reality her 
holy vocation required, and with heart rent by 
anguish, she prayed our Lord to choose for the 
accomplishment of His designs, another and more 
worthy instrument. Then, recognizing herself as 
ungrateful and culpable, she made, with the aid of 
her confessor, a review of conscience, resolving to 
lead, henceforth, a life conformable to the lights 
which were given her upon her miseries and noth¬ 
ingness. 

This was only the beginning of a new career of 
interior struggles and combats ; the demon assailed 
her by thousands and thousands of temptations, to 
which was added the deprivation of all sensible con¬ 
solations; it seemed to her that her soul had lost 
even sanctifying grace ; and finding only disgust and 
bitterness in devotions formerly most dear to her, 
she became reduced to a state of spiritual agony, and 
scarcely dared receive Holy Communion. 

One day, when not having exposed the sad state 
of her soul to her Superioress, and hence, hesitating 
as to whether she should approach the Holy Table, 
she tried to reassure herself by the thought that 
this Bread of the Strong would infuse courage. 
Then, whilst awaiting the hour for Mass, she took 
her crucifix with faith, and remembering our Lord 
had told her that the Act of Praise called the Golden 
Arrow , delightfully wounded His Heart, she pro¬ 
nounced this formula ten consecutive times, and 
resolved to receive Holy Communion in reparation 


THE HOLY FACE. 


217 


for blasphemy. It needed nothing more to touch 
the heart of the Heavenly Spouse. With all tender¬ 
ness did He receive that soul, which, notwithstand¬ 
ing its desolation, had come to unite itself with Him, 
and make amends for the outrages offered His 
Eternal Father. 

“ Oh ! how good is God ! ” exclaims the Sister, 
“ Oh ! how great His mercy ! Having received 
this God of Love in Holy Communion, I said to 
Him with faith : ‘ O heavenly Physician ! I place 
my soul in Thy hands.' . . . Immediately this 
amiable Saviour made me experience the benefit of 
my prayer ; gathering me into Himself that I might 
forget my sorrows, He told me it was His sovereign 
Will that I should make strenuous efforts for the 
establishment of the Work of the Reparation, despite 
the assaults of the demons, who had filled me with 
sadness and repugnance, because they wished to 
annihilate the Work, and were doing their utmost 
with this intent. 

Masters of the spiritual life have observed that 
the Divine Word, in His intimate relations with 
chosen souls, often manifests in their regard the 
most sudden alternations of His Divine pleasure, 
causing them, in a moment, to pass from tears to joy, 
from temptation to peace, from the depths of intense 
darkness to the sublime heights of supernatural hap¬ 
piness. And such was now the experience of Marie 
de Saint-Pierre. Our Lord, as if to indemnify her 
for the state of suffering she has just described, 
granted her one of His most consoling and fruitful 
communications. The Reparative Mystery of the 
Holy Face was suddenly revealed to her. She felt 
19 


218 LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 

herself carried in spirit to the road leading to Cal¬ 
vary. “ There,” says she, “ our Lord vividly por¬ 
trayed before me the pious and charitable act of 
Veronica, who, with her veil, had wiped His most 
Holy Face, covered with spittle, dust, sweat, and 
blood. This Divine Saviour made me understand, 
that, at present, the impious, by their blasphemies, 
renewed the outrages and indignities offered His 
Holy Face : all the blasphemies now hurled against 
the Divinity, Whom they cannot reach, falling back, 
like the spittle of the Jews, upon the Face of our 
Lord, Who offered Himself a Victim for sinners. 
He now told me that He wished me to imitate the 
zeal of the pious Veronica, who had so courageously 
braved the crowd of His enemies to reach Him, and 
that He presented her to me as my protectress and 
model ;—that we render Him the same service as this 
heroic Jewish woman, when we promote the Repara¬ 
tion for Blasphemy, and that he regards those who do 
so, with the same complacent eyes as He gazed upon 
her when on His road to Calvary. I saw that she 
was greatly beloved T>y our Lord, for He told me 
He wished her be especially honored in our monas¬ 
tery, inviting me to ask of Him graces through the 
merits of this her service, and promising that He 
would grant them.* ” 

This is the first time our Lord speaks to His 
faithful servant of His Holy Face, and proposes to 
her the example of that generous Israelite, whose 
heroic act of charity tradition has immortalized. 

The exposition is very clear, the root and principle 
of the marvellous economy of the Reparation for 


* Document B, p. 49. 


THE- HOLY FACE. 


219 


Blasphemy being contained therein entire. Its devel¬ 
opment we perceive in the succeeding revelations. 

Joyful beyond measure, in consequence of the 
graces just received, the Sister continues : “ So won¬ 
derful were the effects of this communication upon my 
soul, that I could never tire of praising the power 
and goodness of our Lord. Before Holy Commun¬ 
ion, I was plunged in an abyss of woe, and after 
receiving the Bread of Life, I felt as if raised from 
the dead. Inundated with joy, I went to our Rev¬ 
erend Mother, and acquainted her with what the 
Divine Master had just made known to me concerning 
the connection of His Holy Face with the Work of 
the Reparation. ‘ Mother/ I added, ‘ our Lord has 
promised to grant me some favor through the inter¬ 
cession of the pious Veronica; what do you wish me 
to ask Him for you?* - I felt urged to make this 
request of our Reverend Mother, as our Lord had 
given me the conviction that my petition would be 
granted, and this I thought would be a strong proof 
of the truth of the new light I had just received. 
Our Mother replied: ‘If our Lord desires us to 
wipe His Face, and wishes to grant us a favor 
through this service of the pious Veronica, tell Him 
I command you to ask of Him, that He may have 
the goodness to veil our faces, which will be exposed 
to the gaze of seculars, if that lot of land adjoining 
our garden be sold to strangers ; ask Him, there¬ 
fore, to give it to His daughters ; and if He grants 
you this favor, your Superiors will consider it a sen¬ 
sible proof of the spirit which leads you/ ” 

Mother Marie of the Incarnation was then very 
busy in directing the construction of the new monas- 


220 LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 

tery on Ursuline Street, and completing the pur¬ 
chase of the necessary surroundings. At the side 
of the lot already purchased, was a portion of 
ground commanding a view of the Carmelites’ gar¬ 
den. This, as one may readily understand, was a 
serious inconvenience for cloistered nuns, whose 
Rule ordains that .they be absolutely hidden from 
the curious and profane gaze of people of the world. 

With that humorous gaiety and apparent indiffer¬ 
ence ever characterizing Mother Marie’s manner 
towards her spiritual daughter, she made the reply 
above quoted. The Sister obeyed the order, and 
began a Novena of Prayers to the Holy Face, say¬ 
ing, in all simplicity, to our Lord, “Thou well 
knowest, my God, that I desire this piece of ground 
solely on Thy own account, and for the glory of Thy 
Holy Name.” 

To the purchasing of this lot by the convent there 
were difficulties apparently insurmountable ; hence, 
the good Sister prayed fervently for their removal, 
which she saw would present an almost unquestion¬ 
able proof of her mission. We shall see hereafter, 
in what manner her prayers were answered. 

For the present, let us listen to her own account 
of her attraction for the Holy Face, and her homage 
to It, since that first communication of our Lord 
respecting It. “ I believe,” says she, “ that I am * 
under the special protection of the pious Veronica. 

I am constantly occupied in adoring our Divine 
Saviour’s august and Most Holy Face. I feel that 
my soul is in God’s hands as an instrument which 
He wields at Will. I have been interiorly urged 
these last few days to express to Jesus, what our 


THE HOLY FACE. 


221 


worthy Prelate told me touching the Work of Rep¬ 
aration for Blasphemy, at the time I had the honor of 
speaking to his Grace. Yesterday, especially, I con¬ 
jured our Lord, after Holy Communion, to vouch¬ 
safe me new lights. ‘ Thou well knowest, my God/ 
said I, ‘ that it is through holy obedience I make 
this request, and on the part of our Archbishop/ 
This Divine Saviour did not judge proper to answer 
me ; He only very profoundly collected the powers 
of my soul within Himself, in the contemplation of 
His adorable Face/’ 

On the 27th of October, as soon as the Sister had 
entered the choir for morning prayer, the Saviour 
again communicated Himself to her soul in His 
usual manner ; and, as if in answer to the petition 
made in the Name of the Archbishop, He manifested 
to her His designs concerning the Work of the Rep¬ 
aration. 

“It is here, my Reverend Mother,” says she, 
“ that I stand in especial need of the Holy Ghost to 
guide my pan, as I know not how to express what I 
have seen and heard. The following is the nearest 
approach I can make to it in human language: 
Our good Saviour, having collected the powers of 
my soul in His Divine Heart, strongly attracted me 
to the contemplation of His adorable Face.. He 
made known to me, through a celestial illumina¬ 
tion, that this august and Holy Face offered to our 
adoration, was the ineffable mirror of those Divine 
perfections, comprised and contained in the Holy 
Name of God. 

“ It is impossible for me to express in language 
this intellectual vision, unless it be by these words of 
19* 


222 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


the Apostle St. Paul : ( The Head of Christ is God.’* 
I have read this text since the communication, and 
very vividly has it impressed me, for I recognized 
therein the idea of that which had been communi¬ 
cated to me. 

“ I comprehended, that as the Sacred Heart of 
Jesus was the sensible object offered to our adoration, 
to represent His boundless love in the Sacrament of 
the Altar, likewise, in the Work of the Reparation, 
is our Lord’s Face the sensible object offered to the 
adoration of the Associates, to atone for the outrages 
of blasphemers, who attack the Divinity of which It 
is the figure, the mirror and expression. In virtue 
of this adorable Face presented to the Eternal 
Father, we can appease His wrath and obtain the 

* I Cor., XI, 3. “Is there not, indeed, a mysterious meaning 
applicable to the worship of the Holy Face, in these words of the 
Apostle: Caput Christi Deus: ‘God is the Head of Jesus 
Christ ?’ Is it not allowable to infer that the word Head, Chief, 
signifies not only the authority which God has over Jesus Christ 
as Man, but that the Head of the Saviour is, in an especial man¬ 
ner, the image of the Divine Majesty ? 

“ What favors this interpretation, is the connection existing 
between the verses accompanying these words, and the conclu¬ 
sion the Apostle draws therefrom. ‘ The head of every man, 1 
says he, ‘is Jesus Christ: and the head of the woman is the man: 
and the Head of Christ is God 1 If there were question solely 
of the power God lias over the Humanity of Jesus Christ, Jesus 
Christ over man, and man over woman, it would suffice to con- 
lude that woman must be in subjection to man, and man to Jesus 
Christ, as is our Lord Himself to His Father. But St. Paul goes 
farther. He wills that man respect Jesus Christ Who is his 
Head, by praying with an uncovered head. ‘ Every man pray¬ 
ing or prophesying with the head covered, disgraceth his head/ 
(I Cor., xi, 4.) But, woman, because man is her head, veils her¬ 
self whilst praying. ‘Every woman praying or prophesying 
with the head not covered, disgraceth her head.’ . . . (Ibid.) 


THE HOLY FACE. 


223 


conversion of the impious and blasphemers. Such 
a devotion is not only not contrary to the Work, 
but must needs be advantageous to its propagation.” 

The correlation existing between the devotion of 
the Sacred Heart and that of the Holy Face could 
not be better expressed. The Holy Face represents 
the Divinity outraged and insulted by blasphemers, 
even as the Sacred Heart represents the infinite love 
of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament of the Eucharist. 

Sister Saint-Pierre was suddenly favored with 
another light. “Our Lord,” says she, “made me 
comprehend that the Church, His Spouse, is His Mys¬ 
tical Body, and Religion the Face of that Body. 
Then He showed me this Face, a butt to the enemies 
of His Holy Name, and I saw that blasphemers and 

“ There is here an idea of dignity attached to the head, taken 
in the physical sense—dignity of man as the head of woman, of 
Jesus Christ as the Head of man, and the dignity, the majesty 
of God, as the august Head of Jesus Christ. 

“We may still better infer the dignity of the adorable Head of 
our Lord from one of the succeeding verses, wherein St. Paul 
says : 1 The man, indeed, ought not to cover his head : because 
he is the image and glory of God, but the woman is the glory of 
the man.’ (Verse 4, Ibid.) 

“ The Sacred Text, it is true, simply says that man is the image 
and glory of God, and does not especially mention the head ; but 
why, according to this, forbid him covering his head, unless the 
head be that organ wherein principally resides this image and 
glory ? Hence, if the head of man be honored with such a dig¬ 
nity, must we not with greater reason look upon the august 
Head of Jesus Christ as the emblem of the Divine Majesty, and 
His Holy Face as the image and the glory of God ? ” 

This explanation, to be found in a note at the end of the 
account written by Sister Saint-Pierre, we preserve as being 
the work of the copyist, Rev. Father Botrel, a friend of M. 
Dupont. It opens an entirely new horizon of lights upon the 
worship of the Holy Face. 


224 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


sectarians, renewed upon our Lord’s Holy Face, all 
the opprobrium of His Passion. I also saw, by 
means of this Divine light, that the impious, by 
wicked words and blaspheming God’s Holy Name, 
spat in our Saviour’s Face, and covered it with mud ; 
that all the blows Holy Church and Religion receive 
from sectarians, were a renewal of the numerous 
buffets upon our Lord’s Holy Face, and that these 
wretches, in striving to annihilate the Infinite merits 
of Its sufferings, caused the sweat, as it were, of this 
Holy Face.” 

The word Religion used here to express the Face of 
Christ’s Mystical Body is easily explained. It sig¬ 
nifies the entirety of the Christian revelation ; that 
is, the doctrine of Jesus Christ, which teaches us 
what to believe, what to practice, and what homage 
we must render God. Religion, in this sense, is the 
Face of the Church, because these doctrines render 
palpable the features by which it is known to us, 
even in the same manner as we distinguish and rec¬ 
ognize a person by his countenance. The Face of 
the Church is, at the same time, the Face of Jesus 
Christ ; because the Church can have only one Head, 
consequently, one Face, that of our Lord. Finally, 
in a mystical sense, w r e can say that the doctrine of 
Jesus Christ, in other words, the Christian Religion, 
is, likewise, His Face, as well as that of the Church, 
because, thereby we know Him. Hence, the Sister’s 
inspired expression is not only justifiable, but even 
worthy of our deepest admiration by reason of its 
accuracy and dépth of meaning. 

Besides, nothing is more in conformity with the 
spirit of reparation which our Lord proposes. In 


THE HOLY FACE. 


225 


our day, more especially, lias the Face of His Mys¬ 
tical Body, the Church, been a butt for the outrages 
of her enemies. Sectarians cover her with their dis¬ 
gusting spittle ; venting their malice against her in 
a thousand acts of violence or perfidy, they recall 
the buffets upon our Saviour’s Face during His 
Passion ; and after the lapse of centuries, wherein 
He has “ gone about doing good,” they would anni¬ 
hilate His work, and thus render futile the sal¬ 
vation He brought to mankind. This Face of the 
Church has need, moreover, of being consoled and 
rejoiced, and we are not surprised that, in behalf of 
His Spouse, like Himself on the road to Calvary, 
Christ repeats to His servant, the request He had 
already made. 

“After showing me this,” continues the Sister, 
“ our Lord Jesus Christ said to me, ‘1 seek Veron¬ 
icas to wipe and honor My Divine Face which has 
few adorers ! ’ And He made me understand anew, 
that all who would apply themselves to this Work 
of the Reparation, would thereby perform for Him 
the office of the pious Veronica. Then He addressed 
me these mysterious and consoling words : ‘ I give 
you My Holy Face as a recompense for the services 
you have rendered Me during the past two years; 
you have done but little, it is true, but your heart 
has conceived great desires ; I therefore present you 
this gift in virtue of the Holy Ghost, in the presence 
of My Father, the Angels and Saints, through the 
hands of My Holy Mother, and Saint Veronica, 
who will teach you in what manner It should be 
venerated ! ’ Our Lord, moreover, said to me, ‘ By 
My Holy Face you will work wonders.’ ” 


226 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


The Sister understood that this precious gift was 
* intended not for herself alone, but to become the 
distinctive sign and the great lever of the projected 
Work of Reparation for Blasphemy. 

“For the Divine Master,” says she, “manifested 
to me His great desire of seeing His Holy Face 
offered to the adoration of His children, as the espe¬ 
cial and befitting object of devotion for the Associ¬ 
ates of the Confraternity for the Reparation for 
Blasphemy, and He seemed to invite me to make 
known His adorable Face under this aspect.” 

She must, at the same time, have been deeply im¬ 
pressed with the value and excellence of the grace 
our T iord thus bestowed upon her, for she writes : 
“ He told me, ‘ It was the greatest gift He could 
make me, after that of the Sacraments, and that He 
had prepared me for its reception, in furrowing the 
soil of my soul by the interior trials, I had so 
recently endured/ I also learned that He appointed 
as protectors of this Work of the Reparation, St. 
Louis, king of France, on account of the zeal He 
had ever evinced for the glory of His Name, and 
the pious Veronica, in recompense of the service she 
had rendered Him in wiping His adorable Face on 
the road to Calvary. 

“After our Lord had given me these new and 
vivid lights concerning the Work of Reparation 
for Blasphemy, He added : ‘ Now, if any will not 
recognize in this My Work, it is because they close 
their eyes/ At the end, I felt a little uneasiness as 
to the reality of this communication, on account of its 
length, but our Lord reassured me, saying, ‘ He had 
divers ways of manifesting Himself to souls, that He 
had accommodated Himself to my weakness, and I 


THE HOLY FACE. 


227 


ought to recognize Him herein by my experience of 
the same sweet and peaceful manner in which He had 
communicated Himself to me heretofore.’ He acts 
with me like a tender Father who gives me His 
orders, and makes known to me His wishes ; but it 
is necessary to this, that my soul be in a state of 
quietude, unmoved by any passion. A great joy or 
great sorrow,—whatever might cause agitation, hin¬ 
ders my receiving these interior lights. Whenever, in 
His Infinite goodness, He deigns to make Himself 
heard, all takes place so quietly, yet becomes so 
strongly stamped upon my soul, that I can apply 
myself only to what my Divine Saviour makes me 
understand is His good pleasure. 

“At my entrance into the religious state, He had 
promised me, ‘that if, for the accomplishment of 
His designs, I abandoned myself entirely to Him, 
and made Him a gift of all the merits I would 
acquire in this state, He Himself would direct my 
soul in His ways ; and I can truly declare here, to 
the glory of this Good Shepherd, that, notwithstand¬ 
ing my unworthiness, He leads me, step by step, as 
one of His lambs. He leads me, at Will, to pas¬ 
ture sometimes in one field, sometimes in another ; 
now amid the delights of flowery vales, on the slopes 
of verdant hillocks, anon, over burning desert sands, 
—according to the needs and spiritual strength of 
His poor little lamb. I have thought it not unprofit¬ 
able to make known, in a few words, this, our 
Lord’s guidance of my soul, in order that those who 
are to judge of the illuminations which I believe I 
have received from Him, may be the better enabled 
to do so. May His Holy Name be blessed for His 
great care of a poor, miserable sinner ! ” 


CHAPTER XIII. 


VERONICA AND THE GOOD THIEF. 

During His Sacred Passion two persons rendered Him signal 
services,—Veronica, by wiping His adorable Face on the road 
to Calvary, and the “Good Thief,” on the Cross, by defending 
‘ His cause, and confessing His Divinity. {The Sister’s Words.) 

Two days later, on the Feast of the holy Apostles, 
Saints Simon and Jude, during evening prayer, the 
Heavenly Spouse continued to instruct Marie de 
Saint-Pierre upon the new subject so recently pre¬ 
sented to her contemplation. “Our Lord,” says 
she, “deigned to abase Himself towards my un¬ 
grateful and sinful soul, imparting to it a communi¬ 
cation, which I think, Reverend Mother, will give 
you pleasure. Considering, my extreme unwortlii- 
ness, I had difficulty in persuading myself, that our 
Lord had really vouchsafed to grant me so great a 
favor, as the precious gift of His Holy Face ; and 
this is why I asked Him to give me a sensible sign 
of that invisible grace, which I thought I had re¬ 
ceived from His Mercy ; hence, it may be, in order 
to furnish this desired and requested proof, that He 
communicated what I am about to relate. 

“Having taken the 1 Betrayal of Judas’ for the 
subject of my meditation, I sorrowfully considered 
228 


VERONICA AND THE GOOD THIEF. 229 

the outrage inflicted upon the Face of Jesus, by His 
perfidious disciple’s kiss, and it seemed to me, that 
the Divine Master invited me to kiss most fervently 
in a spirit of reparation, the image of His Holy 
Face. After making several acts, I felt that 
our Lord was drawing me to Him ; I obeyed the 
touch of grace, and it was this amiable Saviour’s 
Will to instruct me upon the excellency of the gift 
He had presented me,—His adorable Face ; and He 
had even the goodness to accommodate Himself to 
the feeble powers of my mind, by the following 
simple comparison : ‘ As in earthly kingdoms,’ said 
He, ‘coin stamped with the king’s effigy is the 
currency enabling one to purchase at will, so in the 
Kingdom of Heaven, is the precious coin of my 
Holy Humanity, which is my Adorable Counte¬ 
nance.’ ” 

Such a magnificent promise sent a thrill of joy 
through the heart of this servant of God. “ These 
divine lights,” says she, “ which, in order to make 
myself understood, I am obliged to express in words 
all too feeble for my purposes, have put me beside 
myself, and moreover, I have experienced inte¬ 
riorly what I find it impossible to describe. I 
have supplicated our Lord to instruct me, and 
render more intelligible to my poor mind what 
I felt, for the powers of my soul were seemingly 
suspended.” 

Especially did this figure of a “piece of money” 
fill her with happiness and confidence;—for her 
thoughts naturally reverted from it to the lot ad¬ 
joining their garden, thus commanding a view of 
the interior of the monastery and exposing the re- 
20 


230 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


ligious to the gaze of seculars—the lot the Mother 
Prioress had told her to ask our Lord to give them. 
“ It seemed to me,” says she, “ that I was to pur¬ 
chase it, with the offering of the Holy Face; also, 
that our Lord assured me, it would be in possession 
of the Community before a year, and that I must 
not trouble myself as to how this would be brought 
about.” In fact, the affair relinquished as hopeless, 
was suddenly opened anew, the proprietor of the 
land who had heretofore remained inflexible, com¬ 
ing unsolicited to offer it on very acceptable condi¬ 
tions. The bargain was closed, and extraordinary 
thing ! a few days after signing the deed, he died 
suddenly. 51 

Although afflicted at such a death, the Sister 
nevertheless gave thanks to God for the great bene¬ 
fit obtained. “ This favor,” says she, “ has filled me 
with joy, for I look upon it as a visible sign of what 
I have received in the gift of the Holy Face, and I 
tremble in thinking of the account God will demand 
of me, if I strive not to render this precious talent 
fruitful for His greater glory and the salvation of 
souls.” 

Succeeding these communications, which unfold 
to Christian piety a most extensive and luminous 
horizon, Sister Saint-Pierre had, on the morrow, 

*This proprietor was Monsieur the Baron de N-, a very 

honorable man and a practical Catholic. The Keverend Pierre 
Aileron, his adviser and confessor had, in vain, made over¬ 
tures to him concerning the purchase of the aforesaid ground 
by the nuns. When the matter was apparently settled in the 
negative, of his own accord, he changed his mind, and the 
necessary papers were drawn up, just three days before his 
death, which naturally he could not have foreseen. 


VERONICA AND THE GOOD THIEF. 231 

(October 30), an interior light upon the same sub¬ 
ject, which she has expressed in the following 
prayer : 

“ Remember, O my soul ! the instructions of thy 
Heavenly Spouse to-day, concerning His adorable 
Face. . . . Remember, that this Divine Head rep¬ 
resents the Eternal Father Who is unbegotten; 
that the mouth of this Holy Face represents the 
Divine Word, begotten of the Father; the two eyes, 
the reciprocal love of the Father and the Son, for 
these two eyes have but one light, one identical 
knowledge, and produce the one same love, which 
typifies the Holy Ghost. Contemplate in His locks 
of hair the infinitude of the adorable perfections of 
the Most Blessed Trinity. Behold in this majestic 
Head, precious portion of the Saviour’s Holy Hu¬ 
manity, the image of the Unity of God. 

“ It is this adorable and mysterious Face of the 
Saviour which blasphemers cover with opprobrium, 
thus renewing the cruel sufferings of the Sacred 
Passion, by assailing the Divinity of which It is the 
image ! ” * 

A series of interesting communications, rapidly 
succeeding one another, are to elucidate and develop 
these consoling truths. In order to express more 
definitely, the propriety of the choice He had made 
of His Holy Face as the principal object of the 
Reparative adoration, our Lord declares to Marie 
de Saint-Pierre, that He gives It to her ‘ to be wiped 
with her homages and perfumed with her praises/ 
and He says : “ In proportion to your care in repair- 


* Document B, p. 58. 


232 LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 

ing the injuries My Face receives from blasphemers, 
will I take care of yours, which has been disfigured 
by sin ; I will restore to it My likeness, and render 
it as beautiful as when it had just left the Baptismal 
font. Abandon yourself then into My hands, to 
suffer all things necessary for the renewal of that 
image on your soul. Be not alarmed if you experi¬ 
ence sadness and darkness, for know, that in a pic¬ 
ture, the dark shades serve to enhance the bright. 
There are men skilled in restoring bodily health ; 
but I alone am the Healer of souls, I alone have the 
power of renewing in them the image of God. I 
have revealed to you this Work of the Reparation, 
I have shown you its excellence, and now I promise 
you the reward. Oh ! if you could behold the 
beauty of My Face ! But vour eyes are yet too 
weak ! ” 

On the 6th of November, Sister Saint-Pierre was 
favored with another communication concerning the 
Holy Face, and the Work of the Reparation. The 
Divine Saviour uses the soul of His faithful servant 
as a means of reaching numberless others, whom He 
has purchased by His Precious Blood. He declares 
to her that He wishes to make known the virtue of 
His adorable Face, thereby to restore to these souls 
God’s image, effaced by sin. “Then He showed 
me,” says she, “in the Apostle St. Peter, an 
example of the power of His Holy Face, the 
sight of It smiting that faithless Apostle’s heart 
with contrition : ‘ Jesus looked at Peter, and Peter 
wept bitterly.’ 

“ Interiorly enlightened from on High, I behold 
that this adorable Face is as the seal of the Divinity, 


VERONICA AND THE GOOD THIEF. 233 

and possesses the power of reproducing in souls who 
honor It, the likeness of God ; it is this which in¬ 
spires me to salute It in these words : 

“‘I salute Thee, I adore Thee, and I love Thee, 
O adorable Face of Jesus, my Beloved, noble Seal 
of the Divinity, I apply myself to Thee with all the 
powers of my soul, and I most humbly nray Thee 
to imprint in us all the image of God/ 

“ My Reverend Mother, if these interior lights 
come from Heaven, they are certainly connected 
with the Work of the Reparation, where man is 
invited to atone for the outrages offered His God, 
who, by a reciprocation of love, promises us that 
He will restore His image to our souls, in applying 
to them the virtue of His adorable Face. What a 
mystery of love ! Oh ! let us, therefore, wipe this 
Saviour’s august Face covered with the spittle of 
blasphemers, and He will wipe ours defiled by the 
spittle of sin. . . .” 

“ Such are the sentiments and lights our Lord has 
given me; and I believe that He has great designs 
of mercy for souls, in thus revealing to us the virtue 
of His Holy Face, for we possess in this precious 
gift an infallible means of appeasing the anger of 
the Eternal Father, irritated against blasphemers. 
Let us supplicate Him to cast a look upon the Face 
of His Divine Son, and the thunder-bolts will fall 
powerless from His hands. ‘Behold , 0 God , our 
Protector: and look on the Face of Thy Christ. ...’”* 
The humble Carmelite was not mistaken in thus 
highly appreciating the means God offered mankind, 


* Psalm LXXXIII, 10. 
20 * 


234 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


through her mediation, of averting the scourges of 
Divine Justice. In the beginning of the following 
year, the Lord gave her new lights, confirming the 
mission of mercy He had already confided to her. 

January 5, 1846, she wrote as follows: “Our 
Lord has made known to me, that the ground we 
purchased from His Heavenly Father by the offer¬ 
ing of His Holy Face, was a sensible figure of the 
Land of the Living, which we should purchase for 
souls innumerable, with the mysterious coin of that 
adorable Face. This Divine Shepherd has shown 
me a sheepfold, and told me, ‘ that He appointed 
me its shepherdess; He has made me understand, 
that these poor sheep, bitten by the serpent and 
infected with the deadly poison of blasphemy, can 
be cured only by my leading them to pasture upon 
the lands of His Divine Mysteries ; that I should 
also enclose them in the adorable Wounds of His 
Sacred Body, and mark them with the effigy of His 
Holy Face. He has warned me that I would have 
much to suffer, because this herd of blasphemers 
was, in an especial manner, under the leadership of 
the Prince of Darkness, Lucifer willingly resigning 
to the other demons the chief command of other 
kinds of sinners, for example, of drunkards, the 
immodest, the avaricious . . . , but not of blas¬ 
phemers, they being his flock of predilection. ‘ It 
is lie/ said the Divine Saviour, ‘who makes this 
Work of the Reparation so difficult for you ; but, 
fear him not, St. Michael and the holy angels will 
protect you ; I give you My Cross as a crook, and 
with it, you will become formidable to Satan.’ Our 
Lord also made me comprehend that it was for this 


VERONICA AND THE GOOD THIEF. 235 

mission He had withdrawn me from the world, and 
called me hither into His holy House. As always 
fearing illusion, I felt a certain uneasiness concern¬ 
ing this communication. He said to me, ‘ Be tran¬ 
quil, Satan has too great a fear of the Cross to mark 
his works with it.’ 

“At prayer, on another occasion, the date of 
which I have forgotten, our Lord reproved me for 
not praying for the conversion of blasphemers, show¬ 
ing me that I had listened to the temptations of the 
demon against confidence in His mercy. He seemed 
to say to me, ‘ Have I not given you the example, 
by praying for them when I was on the Cross ?* 
He likewise declared to me, ‘ that He had great 
designs of mercy towards this class of sinners, and 
desired to use me as the instrument thereof, for He 
made me understand that this Work of the Reparation 
embraces not only Reparation for what is generally 
termed blasphemy, but, also, for whatever may be 
included under that head in the way of attacks 
against Religion and the Holy Church. However, 
it is intended to atone especially for such blas¬ 
phemies as are uttered against the Holy Name of 
God.” 

The above justifies what we have already said in 
regard to that doctrinal blasphemy, vomited forth 
against Religion and the Church; hence, this be¬ 
comes the principal aim of the Reparation, because 
whatever attacks the Church or the religious cultus , 
outrages, in reality, by this very fact, the thrice 
Holy Name of God. 

The year 1846 had dawned upon the horizon of 
time, and yet there were no visible indications of 


236 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


the realization of Sister Saint-Pierre’s most ardent 
wishes. On the 23d of January, she was favored 
with a communication which she relates in the 
following terms: “I cannot restrain my tears at 
thoughts of what our Lord made known to me this 
morning, after Holy Communion. Listen to the 
terrifying words of this Divine Saviour : 

“‘The face of Prance has become hideous in My 
Father’s eyes, and she provokes the arm of His 
Justice; to obtain mercy for her, offer Him the 
Pace of His Son in Whom He takes complacency; 
unless this be done, she will feel the weight of His 
wrath in well-merited chastisements. Her salva¬ 
tion lies in the Face of the Saviour, and behold in 
this,’ added He, ‘ the proof of My goodness towards 
that France that repays Me with ingratitude ! ’ ” In 
terror the Sister asked, “ Lord, is it indeed Thyself 
who communicatest these lights to me?” He an¬ 
swered, ‘^Were you able to obtain them yourself in 
your last Communion? It was designedly I left 
you these eight days in profound darkness, thus to 
help you discern My operations ! ” Convinced of 
the Divine inspiration, she began in all docility to 
say this prayer, which she was continually re¬ 
peating : 

“Eternal Father, we offer Thee the adorable 
Face of Thy Well-beloved Son, for the honor and 
glory of Thy Holy Name, and for the salvation of 
France.” 

Henceforth, it was only amidst great anguish that 
she received new lights;—God’s threats on the one 
side, and interior sufferings on the other, joined to 
the seeming impossibility of her seeing executed the 


VERONICA AND THE GOOD THIEF. 237 

commands God had imposed upon her to make 
known, filled her with bitterness and desolations. 

“My poor heart,” says she, (March 8, 1846), “is 
pierced by a sword of grief; our Lord, this morn¬ 
ing, again concentrated the powers of my soul upon 
His precious Head crowned with thorns, and His 
adorable Face, which is a butt for the outrages of 
the enemies of God and the Church. Again did I 
hear His dolorous plaints,— f that He sought in 
our convent souls who would repair the outrages 
inflicted on Him, and would heal His Divine 
Wounds, by applying to them the wine of compas¬ 
sion, and the oil of charity/—also, that if the Com¬ 
munity embraced this exercise of the Reparation, 
He would give it a hiss of love which would he the 
;pledge of the eternal kiss.’ ” New and consoling 
promise, truly worthy of the most pure, and merci¬ 
ful Face of the Saviour ! a favor in perfect accord 
with the desires of all Christian souls, the aspira¬ 
tions of all humanity, expressed by the Spouse of 
the Canticles, when she asks the Divine Word “to 
come forth,” by the Incarnation from the Bosom of 
His Father, that she may “ hear His voice,” behold 
His countenance, and bè admitted to the “kiss of 
His lips,” whilst awaiting the contemplation of 
Him, face to face, in the splendor of His glory.* 
After this ravishing sketch the Sister continues: 
“ It seems to me, also, my Reverend Mother, that 
our Lord commanded me to thank you for your 
efforts for Him in this Work of the Reparation for 
Blasphemies, and to- urge you to 'continue. I was 


* Cant. I, 1; IV, 1. 


238 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


loath to take the resolution of mentioning these- 
things, because I feared illusion, and I told our 
Lord, that notwithstanding my desire of seeing 
Him glorified, I desired never to utter any words 
which might be only the simple effect of my imagi¬ 
nation ; but He urged me to plead His cause, and to 
ask relief for Him in His cruel sufferings. I felt 
this Divine Saviour’s presence in my soul for nearly 
two hours. ( Ah ! my Saviour ! 9 said I, ‘ be pleased 
to choose a more worthy instrument ; seek a Teresa 
or a Gertrude ; 9 and here my poor heart was some¬ 
what relieved by my sobs and tears. That day was 
for me one full of anguish, but I account them 
happy sufferings, since our Lord has made known 
to me, that my thus participating in His sorrows 
was consolation to Him. 

“ O my good Mother ! I beg of you, for the love 
and consolation of our Lord, to send these Prayers 
of the Reparation, which are so agreeable to Him, 
to a few of our convents. For this intention, I 
have said them twice to-day, praying this Divine 
Saviour to receive them, as the precious perfume St. 
Mary Magdalen poured upon His Head, just a few 
days before His Passion. 

“ This, my Reverend Mother, is as near as I can 
describe, what took place in my soul. For five 
weeks previously, our Lord had not operated any¬ 
thing extraordinary in me, except that I was con¬ 
tinually attracted to the Reparation of Blasphemies, 
sighing to see this Work come forth, however, al¬ 
ways occupying myself, in great peace, with the flock 
entrusted to my charge ; daily, I lead it to pasture 
in the Divine fields of flie Mysteries of the Life 


VERONICA AND THE GOOD THIEF. 239 

and Passion of the Good Shepherd, who lias given 
His life for His lambs, that none of them may 
perish.” 

What are those “ Divine fields,” whither the Sis¬ 
ter leads the flock confided to her care ? They are 
the Mysteries of the Life and Passion of the Sav¬ 
iour, such, for example, as St. Dominic has enumer¬ 
ated and distributed in the devotion of the Rosary— 
the joyful Mysteries, the sorrowful, and the glorious. 
By these, indeed, has our Lord merited for us graces 
which nourish and strengthen our souls ; the fruits 
thereof being deposited in the Sacraments of the 
Church, especially in Penance, and the Holy Eucha¬ 
rist, two never-failing sources, whence sinners may 
obtain, according to their needs, the means of puri¬ 
fying and feeding their souls. 

The holy Carmelite was chosen to be the shep¬ 
herdess of these “ Heavenly Pastures ; ” not that she 
is to preach the Mysteries, or administer the Sacra¬ 
ments, functions exclusively appertaining to the 
Apostleship and Priesthood ; but, that daughter of 
St. Teresa, her mission, according to the example 
and precept of her great seraphic Mother, is to aid 
apostles and priests, by prayer, contemplation, and 
the exercises of the interior life, as practiced in Car¬ 
mel, through the merits of which, these ministers of 
the Sacraments may obtain the necessary light and 
unction to instruct and touch souls, who being thus 
attracted to Jesus Christ, and clothed with His 
merits, shall find in the grace of His Mysteries, the 
wherewith to sanctify, strengthen and fit themselves 
for Heaven. 


240 


LIFE OF SfSTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


Four days later, (March 12), this mission of 
spiritual charity was explained by our Saviour 
Himself. He made known to the Sister that two 
persons had rendered Him signal services during 
His Passion; the first of these was the pious 
Veronica already mentioned, who glorified His 
Holy Humanity, by wiping His adorable Face on 
the road to Calvary ; the second was the “ Good 
Thief,” who, from the cross, as from a pulpit, openly 
defended His cause and confessed His Divinity, 
blasphemed by the other thief, and the Jews. 

“ Our Lord,” says the Sister, “ made me under¬ 
stand, that both are presented to members of the 
Work of the Reparation as models. Veronica is 
the model to persons of her own sex, who are called 
to serve His cause, not by preaching, but by wiping 
His Holy Face with the veil of prayer, praise, and 
adoration, in atonement for the blasphemies of 
sinners; and the “Good Thief” so boldly and 
publicly defending Him, is held up more especially 
to the imitation of His ministers, who, in this 
Work of the Reparation, must do the same. 

“ This amiable Saviour bade me notice the mas:- 

o 

nificent rewards He bestowed upon these two per¬ 
sons, leaving to one the impression of His Divine 
Features, and to the other, vouchsafing the gift of 
His Celestial Kingdom, so agreeable had their ser¬ 
vices been to Him. Then Pie promised me, that 
all who by words, prayers or writings, defended 
His cause in this Work of the Reparation for blas¬ 
phemy, would be defended by Him before His 
Father, and He would give them His Kingdom : it 


VERONICA AND THE GOOD THIEF. 241 


seemed to me, that He told me to promise this most 
confidently, especially to His ministers. 

“To His Spouses, who would strive to wipe and 
honor His Holy Face in atoning for these sins, He 
promises that at the hour of their death, He will 
purify the face of their souls, by effacing the dis¬ 
figurements of sin, and will restore to them their 
primitive beauty. 

“ It also seemed to me that our Lord said,‘ Write 
these promises, for, on account of the interest they will 
excite regarding the eternal reward (which interest 
I do not condemn, since I have given My life to 
merit the Kingdom of Heaven for sinners), they 
will make more impression on the minds of men 
than all I have heretofore said to you concerning 
this Work of the Réparation/ He added, ‘You 
will be guilty of an act of injustice, if you do not 
make known these communications/ The Divine 
Master spoke thus to me, because I hesitated to be¬ 
lieve in them, being always in fear of illusion. 

“This, my Reverend Mother, is (as nearly as I 
can make known to another) what passed in my 
soul; these last lights have completely confused 
me. Experiencing therefrom an interior sorrow and 
a fire which devours me, I can only annihilate my¬ 
self before God, and adore His Divine operations 
upon weakness and nothingness.” 

Lest the reader be astonished at the important 
place assigned the “Good Thief” in the Work of 
the Reparation, let us here recall what is written of 
Him in the Gospel. Whilst Christ was hanging on 
the cross, blasphemies without number filled the air 
around Him. “ And the people stood beholding, 
21 


242 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


and the rulers with them derided Him, saying: 
1 He saved others, let Him save Himself, if He be 
Christ, the elect of God/ 

u In like manner also the chief-priests with the 
scribes and ancients mocking said , 1 He saved others, 
Himself He cannot save. If He be the King of 
Israel, let Him come down from the cross, and we 
will believe in Him . . . for He said, I am the 
Son of God/ And, one of those robbers who were 
hanged, blasphemed Him, saying, ‘ If Thou be 
Christ, save Thyself, and us/ ” 

These words of “ the bad thief” are really blas¬ 
phemous, for they are equivalent to saying : “ If 
Thou dost not descend from the gibbet, and also 
help us to descend from ours, Thou art not the 
Christ, as Thou dost pretend to be, Thou dost be¬ 
tray Thyself by Thy lack of power . . .” Could 
one possibly address the Son of God in more injur¬ 
ious words than these ? “ But the other answering, 

rebuked him, saying* ‘ Neither dost thou fear God, 
seeing thou art under the same condemnation. And 
we indeed justly, for we receive the due reward of 
our deeds : but this man hath done no evil/ ” 

This is the veritable type of true zeal, equally 
courageous, charitable and enlightened. This fer¬ 
vent convert could not quietly endure to hear the 
partner of his punishment, seemingly devoid of all 
fear of God, even at the moment of appearing before 
the Sovereign Judge, uniting his voice with those 
who heaped insults and maledictions upon the Mes¬ 
siah, as if Chris/s Kingship were to be extinguished 
in death ; and fired with a holy zeal, he reproaches 
him for his perversity and audacity. As for him- 


VERONICA AND THE GOOD THIEF. 243 

self, full of faith, humility and contrition, he con¬ 
fesses his sins, and accepts with resignation, their 
merited chastisement. From the height of his gib¬ 
bet, endeavoring to silence these blasphemers, he 
publicly bears testimony to the innocence, and sanc¬ 
tity of our Lord Jesus, and heralds the glory of 
Him whom all anathematize. In his eyes, the 
Saviour’s cross is, “ neither a scandal nor a folly, 
but the virtue and the wisdom of God;” in that 
patient, heroic Sufferer crowned with thorns, he 
adores the Sovereign Lord of Heaven and earth, 
the King of kings. Turning towards this dolor¬ 
ous and bruised Face a look full of reverence and 
supplication, he says to Jesus, “ Lord, remember me 
when Thou shalt come into Thy Kingdom.” And 
this contrite prayer of humble confidence was that 
moment to receive its answer. 

The Divine Face of the dying Christ rests upon 
him Its pitying gaze, and the holy penitent, this 
model of souls engaged in the Work of the Repa¬ 
ration, hears these ineffable words, assuring him 
that recompense inestimable, the immediate vision 
of this glorified Face : 

“Amen, I say to thee, this day thou shalt be 
with Me in Paradise.” * 

The Holy Fathers and the Doctors of the Church 
seem never to tire of praising the “Good Thief.” 
In the opinion of St. John Chrysostom, his Faith 
excels that of Abraham, Moses, and Isaias. “ These,” 
says he, “ beheld Christ upon a throne, in the midst 
of glory, and they believed ; but the “ Good Thief” 


* Matthew XXVII, 41, 42, 43. Luke XXIII, 35, 39, 40, 41. 


244 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


sees Him in torments on a cross, and lie adores Him 
even as if radiant with glory ; lie looks up to Him 
on the cross, and prays to Him as if He were seated 
in the highest Heavens: he beholds Him a con¬ 
demned criminal, and he invokes Him as a 
King.” . . . 

According to this same Holy Father, he became 
at once an “ evangelist,” and a “ prophet ; ” he 
preached the Divinity of the Crucified, and an¬ 
nounced His eternal Kingship. Tradition says the 
name of the “Good Thief” was Dysmas. In the 
Roman Martyrology, he is mentioned on the 25th 
of March, in the list of holy martyrs, and the 
Breviary indicates his feast as a Duplex Rite—cele¬ 
brated in certain places on the 24th of April. One 
portion of the prayer belonging to his Office is of 
especial significance in this connection : the Church 
implores the “ Almighty and Merciful God, who 
justifies the impious, to excite us to repentance by 
that benevolent look of His only begotten Son which 
won the Blessed Thief\ and to grant us the same 
eternal glory.” 

No worthier and better authorized model could 
have been offered the Catholics of our day, who 
desire to be zealous promoters and Apostles of this 
Work of the Reparation. 

As to Veronica, her history, though not written 
in the Gospel, has been preserved by tradition, and 
is well known throughout the world. The heroic act 
of charity she rendered our Lord, to which Sister 
Saint-Pierre alludes, forms the Sixth Station in the 
“Way of the Cross.” Her veil is at Rome, re¬ 
ligiously preserved in the Vatican Basilica of Saint 


VERONICA AND THE GOOD THIEF. 245 

Peter’s, where it receives every mark of honor and 
veneration, from the beginning of the Christian era 
having been regarded as one of the most precious 
relics of Our Divine Redeemer’s Sacred Passion. 
Since the celestial communications to the Carmelite 
of Tours, concerning the Holy Face, authentic 
copies of this venerated “ veil ” (thanks to the zeal 
of M. Dupont, the Holy Man of Tours), are now 
to be found in France, America, and various other 
parts of the Catholic world, the objects of an especial 
veneration, and the exterior sign of the Reparation 
for Blasphemy. 

The pious Veronica, delegated by our Lord Him¬ 
self, has become the Patroness and Protectress of 
this great Work, and naturally, her example sug¬ 
gests itself to all generous souls ardently devoting 
themselves to this signal means of grace, mercy and 
salvation, offered the world through the infinite 
merits of the Adorable Face of our Lord and 
Saviour Jesus Christ/ 


21 * 


CHAPTER XIV. 


LA. SALETTE. 

11 My Mother has spoken to mankind of My wrath, she longs to 
appease it.” (Our Lord’s Words.) 

The revelations Marie de Saint-Pierre received upon 
the cultus of the Holy Face, appear, as we have al¬ 
ready shown, to have opened a new phase in the 
history of these communications. Their character¬ 
istics, ever tending towards the same end, we shall 
see gradually assuming a more definite form. But 
even from the present, it is easy for us to compre¬ 
hend, and follow the regular course, that which, in 
a measure, our Lord seems to have adopted towards 
His humble servant. 

He, at first, infuses into her mind, and demon¬ 
strates to her by degrees, the necessity of Repara¬ 
tion ; then leaving her for a time, that she may be 
thoroughly penetrated with this truth, He imparts 
the especial instructions concerning the cultus of the 
Holy Face as the means of accomplishing the Work, 
setting forth its peculiar applicability with equal 
justness and wisdom. 

The Sister will not witness the application of this 
reparative means, but the instruments assigned her 
are near at hand, one especially, whom we have 
246 


LA SALETTE. 


247 


already mentioned several times, M. Dupont, who, 
although a simple layman and living in the world, 
is destined to become the principal auxiliary of the 
virgin of the cloister. During his ten years’ resi¬ 
dence at Tours, his name, and the reputation of his 
sanctity had filled the city, and, by degrees, he had 
become intimately acquainted with the daughters of 
St. Teresa, especially with Sister Saint-Pierre. 
Hence, the year his beloved daughter, Henrietta, 
was to make her First Communion, we find this 
virtuous father who ardently desired that her soul 
should be fully prepared for this great event of her 
life,* frequently recommending her to the prayers 
of the good Carmelite. 

June 4, 1844, Sister Saint-Pierre wrote him a 
letter on this subject, a portion of which at least, 
we consider worthy of being inserted here : 

“ I am very much pleased,” says she, “ to com¬ 
ply with the request you make me of daily saying 
to the most Holy Infant Jesus, for your beloved 
daughter, the touching prayer you have sent me, 
begging the Divine Infant to prepare that young 
heart to receive Him with the most perfect disposi¬ 
tions. I am indeed very unworthy of presenting 
this petition to the Child-God ; but, I will pray 
Mary and Joseph to do so, and to offer your dear 
child to the Holy Infant Jesus, that the day of her 
First Communion, be as that of her espousals with 
Him. Permit me, Sir, to make a request of you, 
in the Name of the Holy Child Jesus, which is, 
that you offer Him three wax candles. I will have 


*Life of M. Dupont, p. 155. 


248 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


them burned in honor of the Holy Family, to ob¬ 
tain the accomplishment of your desires. The 
Divine Child has much love for these little illumi¬ 
nations, and in return for so simple and innocent a 
practice, He granted a very great grace to the 
Venerable Sister Marguerite of the Blessed Sacra¬ 
ment. Our good and Reverend Mother has several 
times given us the means of performing this little 
devotion, but just now I am very poor.” 

Henrietta’s good father did not hesitate to com¬ 
ply with this pious request so truly according with 
his own heart’s desires. 

Let us quote another letter of July 26, 1845. 
The virgin of Carmel writes to the holy man, to 
ask of him a book of devotion upon the Holy 
Eucharist : “ Our Reverend Mother begs you will 
be so kind as to procure me a book, the title of 
which she believes is, ‘ The Triumph of Jesus in the 
Most Blessed Sacrament/ She had a copy, but dur¬ 
ing our change of residence it was mislaid. Stand¬ 
ing in need of fervor, I am desirous of obtaining 
some at any price, be what it may, and I hope, in 
the perusal of this book, to find the wherewith to 
inflame my soul with love for Jesus in the Most 
Blessed Sacrament.” 

Mgr. Morlot was not ignorant of this holy friend¬ 
ship existing between the pious layman and the 
Carmelites, and when in the month of March, 1884, 
his Grace had authorized the printing of the Prayers 
of the Reparation, M. Dupont, with his consent, be¬ 
came at once their zealous distributor. In the fol¬ 
lowing October, Monseigneur wrote to him, enclos¬ 
ing a letter he had just received on the subject : 


LA SALETTE. 


249 


“ I take the liberty,” said he, “ of sending you this 
letter, begging you will be so kind as to answer it 
for me. I also enclose two documents from Rome, 
which make me desirous of having issued a new 
edition of the Prayers for the Association under the 
Patronage of St. Louis, with the addition of a note 
relative to the Indulgences. 

“Yours most humbly and devotedly in our Lord, 
“ Hh F. N., Archbishop of Tours ” 

The above mentioned incidents regarding M. 
Dupont’s intimate and confidential relations on this 
point, both with the venerable Archbishop and the 
Carmelites, prove clearly the importance of the part 
assigned him by Providence, as all unconscious of it 
himself, he was being prepared for the delicate mis¬ 
sion in store for him. But we have now reached 
the year 1846. After the events related in the pre¬ 
ceding chapter, there was, for the space of more 
than six months, from the 23rd of March to 
October 4, a long silence regarding the Work of the 
Reparation, and the cultus of the Holy Face, the 
Sister receiving no communications whatever con¬ 
cerning these two momentous subjects, henceforth, 
to be so inseparably united. This cessation seemed 
as though destined to give souls time for reflection, 
and to prepare them for the signal grace France 
was about to receive ; for it was during this interval, 
occurred within her borders a great event of the 
most miraculous order, and one stirring Catholic 
hearts to their very depths. We refer to the appa¬ 
rition of the Blessed Virgin at La Salette, Septem¬ 
ber 19, 1846. So striking was the connection be- 


250 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


tween this ever memorable event, and Sister Saint- 
Pierre’s communications, that it behoves us to men¬ 
tion it here. M. Dupont’s authority in such a 
matter is of the greatest weight, and we will take for 
our guide a detailed account from his own pen. At 
the beginning, the pious narrator attests the truth 
of what he is about to relate, adding that, in his 
humble opinion, it was “ a prophetic announcement 
of the glorious event of La Salette.” 

“In the early part of September, 1846, before 
leaving Tours with my family for Saint-Servan in 
Brittany, I went to ask the Reverend Mother if she 
had any commissions to send by me to her relatives 
residing at Saint-Malo. The somewhat lengthy list 
committed to my charge, I was obliged to write in 
order to remember it. We then spoke of Sister 
Marie de Saint-Pierre. ‘ She has just communi¬ 
cated to me the following,’ said the Reverend 
Mother, which, having a pencil in my hand at that 
moment, I immediately wrote down : ‘ Our Lord, 
addressing Himself to the Sister, said to her, “ My 
Mother has spoken to mankind of my wrath, she 
longs to appease it ; she has shown Me her bosom, 
and said to Me, ‘ Behold the breasts which nourished 
Thee, allow them to pour out blessings upon my 
other children.’ Then, full of mercy, she descended 
to earth ; have confidence in her.’” 

“ I placed these lines in my prayer book, and, at 
the time, did not attempt to penetrate their mean¬ 
ing. The language which was certainly mysterious, 
apparently linking the past with the present and 
the future, merely confirmed the somewhat vague 
impression I had long held, that this Sister was 


LA SALETTE. 


251 


favored with confidential communications from our 
Lord, which impression assumed the form of con¬ 
viction, when on the 22d of October of the same 
year, I received a copy of the first letter written by 
the curate of Corps, relative to the apparition of 
the Blessed Virgin at La Salette, on the 19th of 
September. Here was the fulfilment of the predic¬ 
tion revealed to Sister Saint-Pierre, in the earlier 
part of that same month. 

“ Taking a copy of her words, I hastened to send 
it to the curate of Corps, who wrote to me imme¬ 
diately on receipt of it. ‘From the very first/ said 
he, ‘ I believed in the apparition of La Salette, and 
now, if I may thus express myself, I doubly be¬ 
lieve.’ ” * 

M. Dupont concludes by an observation explain¬ 
ing why this communication is not found in the 
Sister’s letters, and which also gives us an addi¬ 
tional insight into the Mother Prioress’ guidance of 
her spiritual daughter. 

“ I had made it a rule,” says M. Dupont, “ never 
to make known, anything told me in privacy, con¬ 
cerning the revelations of Sister Saint-Pierre. But, 
it is evident that in the case just mentioned, I was 
obeying a good inspiration, since the communication 
I sent to the curate of Corps, is not found in the 
records of the Revelations. Explanatory of this 
omission, the Reverend Mother said to me, ‘ I 
always order the Sister to commit to writing what 
she desires to tell me, but it is probable, that in the 
present instance, I must have listened to her* inad- 

* Life of M. Dupont, p. 161. Document T, p. 9. 


252 LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 

vertently neglecting my usual formula, tending to 
keep her in humility: ‘My daughter, write, in 
obedience, what you wish to say to me. I have no 
time now to listen to you.’ During the space of 
five years, it is not at all unlikely, that several 
times I may have forgotten this, especially when the 
communication was of no great length, and de¬ 
livered with the Sister’s habitual volubility. And 
in these cases, being scrupulously obedient, she 
would not have used the pen.’ ” 

This explanation is at once simple, natural and 
satisfactory.* M. Dupont, as we have already 
mentioned, considers these words of Sister Saint- 
Pierre as a prophetic announcement of the ^)pari- 
tion of La Salette, and of Mary’s merciful interven¬ 
tion in favor of France. 

He adds, “ It is touching beyond thought or ex¬ 
pression, to behold our august Mother confiding the 
bitterness of her maternal heart, to two poor little 
children. Was if not enough that she had been 
sprinkled with the blood of her Divine Son upon 
Calvary? Must the blasphemers of an impious 
generation of the present day, recall to her the 
frightful Stations of Jerusalem’s streets? And 
what will become of us, if Mary be no longer able 
to restrain the Arm of Jesus?” 

However, considering it a testimony of love on 
the part of the good Heavenly Mother, he regards 
the apparition as a foundation for hope and re¬ 
joicing. “The beautiful crown she assumed before 
speaking to her people,” says he, “betokens the glo- 


* Document T, p. 9. 


LA SALETTE. 


253 


rions nature of the manifestations we must anticipate. 
The most holy and Immaculate Mother of Jesus, 
would not have accepted this message, were her poor 
children on earth to receive it, only to sink the deeper 
into crime, and draw down upon themselves the 
scourges of destruction. Hence, I regard this Ap¬ 
parition as the harbinger of hope.” * 

It can readily be understood what a sensation was 
created among the Carmelites, when M. Dupont 
acquainted them with the mysterious event of La 
Salette. Like himself, the Mother Prioress looked 
upon it as a glorious confirmation given the Work 
of Reparation, demanded by Sister Saint-Pierre ; — 
evidently, the mission confided to the little shep¬ 
herds of the mountain was identical with that of 
the daughter of the cloister, f 

Later, M. Dupont learned the following fact, like¬ 
wise no less worthy of note : that long ere this, the 
holy nun had ardently solicited the favor granted at 
La Salette. Let us listen to her own account of it : 

“ His Grace was unwilling to come to a decision 
in favor of the Work of the Reparation, his pru¬ 
dence preventing his taking the initiative in its 
establishment, and I could well see that my only 
hope and consolation herein lay in prayer, through 
the intercession of Mary, our powerful Advocate. 
Daily I recited the Rosary to obtain the salvation 
of France and the establishment of the Reparation 
in all her cities; all my prayers and Holy Com¬ 
munions, all my desires, all my thoughts, were 

*Life of M. Dupont, p. 178. 
f Ibid, t. I, p. 161. 

22 


254 LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 

directed towards this Work, so dear to my heart. 
Had it been possible, I would have proclaimed it 
throughout the kingdom, by making known the 
woes which I knew were hanging over her. Ah ! 
how I suffer at being sole depositary of this 
weighty secret, which I am obliged to keep within 
the silence of the cloister ! O Holy Virgin, appear 
to some one in the world, and reveal there the afflict¬ 
ing knowledge imparted to me concerning my native 
land ! ” * 

It is well known how the Blessed Virgin an¬ 
swered this prayer. Once more, proving herself 
indeed “ the Refuge of Sinners,” she interposed 
between the wrath of Heaven and guilty France, 
presenting to her Divine Son “that bosom which 
had nourished Him,” and demanding that she be 
allowed “to pour out her mercies upon her other 
children.” 

And in order that mankind should not be ignor¬ 
ant of this, she descended to earth. Her feet trod 
our soil, and she selected two humble little shep¬ 
herds of an Alpine mountain called La Salette, to 
be her messengers, Maximin and Melanie (since 
become so celebrated), two innocent children through 
whose mouths she reproaches “her people” (thus 
she designates France, her cherished kingdom), for 
the impiety consuming the land in their utter con¬ 
tempt for God’s Commandments, especially in the 
profanation of the Lord’s Day and the crime of 
blasphemy. 

“ If my people do not return to God by penance,” 
said she, “ I shall be forced to let fall the Hand of 


* Document C, p. 57. 


LA SALETTE. 


255 


my Son, it now presses so heavily that I can scarce 
hold it longer. Oh ! if ye but knew how much I 
suffer for you ! ” . . . 

Tears were flowing from her eyes ; and the cruci¬ 
fix upon her heart, surrounded by the instruments 
of the Passion, the cruel hammer and sharp pincers, 
were the ornaments of her maternal bosom. Such 
was the account given by the two little shepherds 
of what they had seen and heard.* 

The two little shepherds had much to endure by 
reason ol their embassy, but, in spite of all, their 
message from the Blessed Lady of La Salette was 
noised about, and gave to the Christian world an 
impulse which has never ceased. In vain did the 
mighty ones of earth strive to arrest its progress ; 
their efforts served but the contrary purpose,—that 

*We have received a manuscript from La Salette, evidently 
reliable, and dated “November 25, 1846,” only five weeks after 
the Apparition, containing an account of a curious fact we have 
never seen mentioned elsewhere, and which, in our opinion, may 
be regarded as interesting proof of the connection between the 
two devotions of La Salette and the Holy Face. “A lieuten¬ 
ant, who was passing through Corps on his way to Corsica with 
recruits, wishing to see the child (Maximin), had him brought 
to the hotel. After hearing from the child’s lips his account of 
the Apparition, the officer offered to buy a piece of the rock 
upon which the Blessed Virgin had seated herself. 1 Oh ! Sir/ 
said the child, handing him a fragment of it, ‘ I willingly give 
you some, but I cannot sell it ! 1 The officer broke it to take 
half, and imagine his astonishment at beholding, just where he 
had broken it, a representation of the Face of our Lord Jesus 
Christ, a crown on Its head, and a full beard ! He made a copy 
of this Head, and gave the sketch to the child’s mother, with 
the addition of his signature and that of another officer who was 
present, but the precious portion of rock containing the impres¬ 
sion he took away with him, absolutely refusing to part with it.” 


256 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


of adding weight to the children’s testimony; and 
Catholic France, recognizing her crime and fearing 
its chastisements, began to enter upon the way of 
Reparation. 

Let us now listen to Sister Saint-Pierre’s hymn 
of thanksgiving and praise for this : 

“ I return thee thanks, O Blessed Virgin Mary, 
for having given me those two little shepherds as 
sounding trumpets, echoing from the mountain, to 
the ears of France, what had been communicated to 
me in the solitude of the cloister. The voices of 
these, my two dear little associates, were soon heard 
throughout the world, and a wonderful impression 
was thereby made upon souls; also, the striking 
similarity between their communications and mine 

The person who sent us this manuscript reproduced upon his 
letter the fac-simile of this Face ; it is a sketch drawn in lines 
without any shading, but representing very clearly the Blessed 
features of the Face, and the crown of our Lord. 

Without wishing to attach to this event any undue importance, 
we, however, beg leave to remind our readers that at this time 
(1846), there was nowhere question of the cultus of the Holy 
Face, except among Sister Saint-Pierre’s intimate friends. 

The translator also craves indulgence for adding a few words 
on the subject ; though but seven years of age at the time, he 
well remembers hearing this event spoken of, possibly by M. 
Dupont himself, who was an intimate friend of his father, and 
with whom the “ Holy Man of Tours ” ever continued to corres¬ 
pond, many passages transcribed from these letters now occupy¬ 
ing a place in .his (M. Dupont’s) published Life. Hence, the 
translator, feeling convinced of the truth of this wonderful cir¬ 
cumstance as well as of other facts connected therewith, deems it 
a duty to add his testimony thereto, and to aid in diffusing a 
knowledge of them in another language, hoping thus to extend 
as far as possible in his power, this Work of the Reparation our 
Divine L&rd asked of the Carmelite of Tours. 


LA SALETTE. 


257 


have induced my worthy Superiors to believe that 
it would be conducive to the glory of God and the 
advancement of His Work were such correlation 
made known. 

“ Our Lord in the Gospel has said : ‘ I bless Thee, 
O Father, Lord of Heaven and earth, because Thou 
hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and 
hast revealed them to little ones. Yea, Father, for 
so hath it seeme'd good in Thy sight/ These words, 
it appears to me, are truly applicable to the admir¬ 
able Work of the Reparation, and to the humble in¬ 
struments through whom God has been pleased to 
establish it in the Church. O my God! to the eyes 
of man, how incomprehensible and hidden are Thy 
ways ! Who but would be astonished at beholding 
the means our Lord and the most Blessed Virgin have 
used for the accomplishment of so great a Work? 
Selecting upon earth a little Trinity of persons the 
most ignorant and contemptible, They have wrought 
prodigies of grace in these souls, thus to render 
them meet instruments for concurrence in the designs 
of the Adorable Trinity, for the glory of His most 
Holy Name. The first is a little shepherdess, who 
consecrated herself to the Holy Child Jesus, to tend 
His lambs upon the mountain of Carmel ; the other 
two, a little shepherd and shepherdess, watching their 
flocks upon the mountain of La Salette. 

“ These three humble missionaries have been com¬ 
missioned to announce to France the woes impend¬ 
ing over her, for her transgression of the Lord’s 
Commandments; likewise, have all three been in¬ 
structed to proclaim pardon and mercy, should she 
return to God through penance. 

22 * 


258 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


“ Thus, these three little messengers of Heaven labor 
at the same work, each performing the part demanded 
by one’s state of life ; she of Carmel is charged to 
pray, write, and keep silence in the solitude of the 
cloister ; whilst the children of La Salette, on the 
contrary, must speak in loud voices on the summit 
of the mountains, and appear before the eyes of 
innumerable pilgrims coming thither to hear their 
predictions of the woes about to * descend upon 
France. Soon will all know with what crimes 
Heaven reproaches their country, and of the Divine 
wrath enkindled against her. Dismayed and tremb¬ 
ling, they will ask themselves what they must do 
to disarm the anger of the Most High ! But, be 
consoled ; the shepherdess of Carmel knows the 
secret of appeasing the Divine Justice; go, and seek 
her ! Like the children of La Salette, she will tell 
it to you:—God is irritated against His people 
because of their violation of His Day, and their 
blasphemies against His thrice Holy Name. For 
the last four years has she heard rumblings of the 
storm now lowering over France;—but your fate is 
in your hands, make atonement for your crimes'by 
establishing the Work of the Reparation, and you 
will obtain the fruits of Heavenly Mercy : you, then, 
will behold ‘ milk and honey’ flowing from the bosom 
of the Mountain of God, Mary, that Mysterious 
Mountain, the excellence of whose dignity raises her 
far above the Angels and Saints ! 

“ Yet, beware of presumptuous confidence. Let us 
pray! Let us pray and weep for our sins; for there 
shall come a time, and it is not far distant, when 
France will be shaken even unto her foundations ! 


LA SALETTE. 


259 


Then will she tremble indeed, but be not engulfed 
in the abyss, if, before the eyes of the Lord, there 
appear in her cities the Work of the Reparation. 
This will mitigate her sentence, and she, who was 
to have been reduced to ashes, will be but scathed 
by the flames.” * 


* Document C., p. 63. 


CHAPTER XY. 


THE SINS OF FRANCE. 

“Ah! if you did but know how pleasing is the sight of My 
Face to My Father!” (Our Lord's Words). 

Fifteen days after the miraculous event of La 
Salette, and the threats uttered against France by 
the Virgin of the Apparition, Sister Saint-Pierre, 
in the holy seclusion of the Carmelite convent, still 
ignorant of what had taken place, wrote thus 
(October 4, 1846,) to the Mother Prioress : 

“ Permit me to give you an account of the sad 
presentiments I have felt since this morning, in 
consequence of a communication I received during 
Holy Communion. 

a You know, my good Mother, that several 
months have passed since I experienced anything 
extraordinary. Our Lord, during this time of trial, 
deigned to purify my soul by great interior suffer¬ 
ings, and I no longer sensibly felt His Presence; 
but, to-day, as soon as I had received Holy Com¬ 
munion, this Divine Saviour intimated to me that 
He wished to keep me at His feet. I obeyed ; 
then, He made me hear these frightful words: 
‘ My justice is irritated by reason of the profanation 
of Sunday; I seek a victim.’ I answered, ‘Lord, 
260 


THE SINS OF FRANCE. 


261 


Thou knowest my Superiors have given me permis¬ 
sion to abandon myself into Thy Divine hands, do 
with me as it pleaseth Thee; but who am I, O 
Lord? and is it indeed Thyself speaking thus to 
my soul ?’ He answered, ‘You shall not remain 
long in doubt.’ It now seemed to me that our 
Lord accepted the act of abandonment I had just 
made Him, and I saw that He was going to take 
possession of my whole being anew, thereby to 
suffer in me Himself, and thus to appease His jus¬ 
tice. Then, He commanded me to receive Holy 
Communion every Sunday: 1. In atonement for 
all unnecessary works on that Holy Day ; 2. With 
the intention of appeasing the Divine Justice, on 
the very verge of striking, and to implore the con¬ 
version of sinners; 3. To obtain the cessation of 
Sunday labor. And it seemed to me, that He now 
invited me to offer His Holy Face to His Celestial 
Father, as the means of attracting His (Father’s) 
mercy. 

“ This, my most Reverend Mother, is, as nearly 
as I can tell you, what passed in my soul. Let us 
hasten to appease our God; for I see His Justice 
ready to descend upon us, the Arm of the Lord is 
indeed raised ! I abandon all this to your judg¬ 
ment ; but, I beg of you to notice one thing which 
touches me most sensibly, and increases my desire 
to see the establishment of the Work of the Repa¬ 
ration,—it is that all the communications I have 
received for more than three years past, always tend 
to the same end, our Divine Saviour ever complain¬ 
ing of these two crimes, the blasphemies uttered 
against God’s Holy Name, and the profanation of 


262 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


His Holy Day. Oh ! how I long to see the begin¬ 
ning of this Work our Lord has so repeatedly asked 
of me, that thus God’s wrath may be appeased, and 
His impending chastisements averted.” * 

Our Lord Jesus had told the Sister, that she 
would not be long in doubt as to whether it was 
Himself, who had spoken to her, announcing the 
chastisements of His justice; nor was she. The 
inundation of the river Loire, jeopardizing the 
entire city of Tours, and causing such frightful 
ravages as had not been seen for centuries, soon fur¬ 
nished her with a striking fulfilment of His words, 
and sufficient proof as to whence the communica¬ 
tion had proceeded; for everywhere danger was rife, 
consternation reigned supreme, and all felt that an 
Omnipotent Hand was wielding the elements at will. 

“ One could but acknowledge,” observes the holy 
Carmelite, “ that Tours was saved only by a mira¬ 
cle. But, alas ! ” adds she, “ the principal cause of 
so terrible a visitation,—the profanation of Sunday, 
was and is still ignored.” 

M. Dupont, in his letters, also speaks of this dis¬ 
astrous inundation, and attributes it to the same 
cause. He likewise sees therein the realization of 
the warnings uttered by the Virgin of La Salette. 
“ The dear little children,” says he, “ prophesied 
but too truly, c that we were about to experience a 
series of great calamities, were not Reparation offered 
to God.’ We are already on the eve of a famine, 
families of slender means not having the wherewith 
to purchase a sufficiency of bread at the exorbitant 


Document B, p. 68. 


THE SINS OF FRANCE. 


263 


price it now commands. All the politicians are in 
commotion, fearing a Revolution ; and enough has 
really been said to the people, to whet their taste for 
blood and pillage. How often are they not told, 
that all ends with death, and that riches alone can 
render man happy ! ” * 

The Lord also made known to His servant, that 
His justice was preparing other chastisements; and 
that this time, He would use as the instruments of 
His wrath, not the elements, “but the malice of 
revolutionary men ! ” 

A few days later (October 25), Sister Saint-Pierre 
received another communication upon the same sub¬ 
ject. In her written narration of it to the Mother 
Prioress, she begins by exclaiming, “ Oh ! if you 
knew what my heart feels at this moment !... I 
cannot express my emotion ; I weep, but they are 
tears of deep thankfulness and love, by reason of 
the words of mercy and peace, the most amiable 
Saviour has just made me hear. Oh ! sweet Jesus, 
if men but knew Thee ! Thou canst not bqhold 
Divine Justice strike us, without being touched 
more sensibly, than we ourselves, at these chastise¬ 
ments, our own sins have merited.” 

She then relates, that Jesus Christ made her un¬ 
derstand that the chalice of the wine of Divine Jus¬ 
tice poured out upon us, was not yet exhausted, 
“and beholding,” says she, “still other chastisements 
prepared to satisfy that Justice, I said to our Lord, 
‘ O sweet Jesus ! if I could but drink what remains, 
so as to spare my brethren ! * He told me He 


Life of M. Dupont, t. I, p. 180. 


264 


LIFE OF SISTEK SAINT-PIEEEE. 


accepted my good will, but, that I was not able to 
drain the cup, and that He alone could. Seeing 
my sorrow at this, He now made me a sign to enter 
into His Divine Heart, which in His unbounded 
Mercy, He has given me as a Vase worthy of being 
presented the Eternal Father to receive the wine of 
His wrath, making me understand, that passing 
through this Holy Channel, it becomes changed for 
us into a wine of Mercy. But not satisfied to slight 
entirely the rights of Justice, if I thus may express 
myself, He wishes to make an alliance between His 
Justice and His Mercy, and for this end, He asks 
the establishment of the Work of the Reparation 
for the glory of His Holy Name. Yes, He will 
disarm the anger of God, His Father, by offering 
Him from us, the Work of the Reparation ! O 
sweet Jesus ! is it not the least we can do to make 
atonement by our prayers, our sighs, our acts of 
adoration for the enormities of which we are 
guilty ? 

“.The following, my Reverend Mother, is the 
prayer our Lord Himself has put in my mouth, 
and which I desire to repeat unceasingly : ‘ Eternal 
Father, look upon the Divine Heart of Jesus, which 
I offer Thee to receive the wine of Thy Justice, that 
it may be changed for us into the wine of Mercy.’ 

“ He has made me understand that each time I 
offered this petition I would obtain a drop of the 
wine of Divine wrath, which, falling as I have 
said, into the Vase of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, 
would be changed into a wine of mercy. My good 
Mother, I beg you will urge my Sisters to make this 
offering frequently, for, alas ! what a feeble barrier 


THE SINS OF FRANCE. 


265 


were I, vile nothingness, in arresting the wrath of 
God!” 

As Archbishop Morlot had requested to be kept 
informed of all the celestial manifestations Sister 
Saint-Pierre received, the Mother Prioress hastened 
to send him the foregoing account. On the same 
day, October 25,1846, he answered by the following 
letter : 

“ I thank you for this interesting and precious 
communication. There is no doubt but these evils 
are the chastisement of our infidelities, and the mul¬ 
titudinous crimes inundating the land. Let this 
chosen soul strive to avert the scourges of God’s 
wrath, and let all who fear the Lord redouble their 
zeal and fervor ! We cannot too ardently desire, or 
too zealously strive to augment faith and piety in the 
hearts of men. 

“ Pray, also, that I may be enabled to fulfil faith¬ 
fully my obligations in this respect, and be ever 
assured, Reverend Mother, of my sincere and devoted 
regard for you in our Lord. 

F. N., Archbishop of Tours” 

In the communications which followed, the Son 
of God seemed especially interested in the welfare of 
France, urging His little Spouse to suffer and to 
pray for this kingdom. “ Even as I have assumed 
all the sins of the world,” said He, “do I wish you 
to assume those of France” ; and to re-assure her He 
added, “ I will suffer in you to appease the anger 
of My Father, and I will give you all My merits to 
cancel your debts.” 

23 


266 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


Notwithstanding the profound conviction she ever 
entertained of her own unworthiness, the daughter 
of Carmel eagerly entered into these intentions of 
the Divine Saviour. “ And, then,” said she, “ I 
beheld myself as though covered with crimes, and I 
asked pardon of Him with the same confusion as 
if I had really committed them myself.” 

On another occasion, our Lord, insisting upon this 
mission He had confided to her, spoke with the 
authority befitting the Sovereign Master of kings 
and people. To every creature God has assigned 
some especial duty in this world, as well in the spir¬ 
itual order of grace and prayer, as in temporal and 
civil things. The Sister finding it difficult to believe 
that He willed “to use so vile an instrument 
as herself for so great a mission,” He said to 
her, “As in the order of My Providence, I give 
such a king to such a country for its ruler, may 
I not likewise, in the order of grace, assign a certain 
nation to some especial individual who will watch 
over it and take charge of its spiritual needs? 
Wherefore; I commit France to your keeping ; pray 
for her and immolate yourself for her. I give you 
anew My Head ; offer It to My Father to appease 
the Divine Justice. Oh ! if you knew the power, 
the virtue residing therein ; and, wherefore ? Be¬ 
cause I have taken upon My Head all the sins of 
mankind, that My Members may be spared. There¬ 
fore, offer My Face to My Father, for this is the 
means of appeasing Him.” He added, “ I desire 
the Work of the Reparation; be assured of its final 
establishment, but the fruits you bear have not yet 
ripened.” 


THE SINS OF FRANCE. 


267 


The generous Carmelite now followed the coun¬ 
sels of her Superiors, abandoning herself into the 
hands of the Divine Saviour as His victim, ready 
to do or suffer whatsoever He might be pleased to 
ask of her. 

“ Then,” said she, “ our Lord again offered to my 
keeping the spiritual care of France. I answered, 
‘ I accept it, my adorable Master, but permit me to 
say to Thee, that I do so on condition that Thou wilt 
be its Sovereign, for if Thy Father behold Thee 
upon the throne of France, His wrath will be arrested, 
He will not strike.* 

“ Since that communication, all my Holy Com¬ 
munions I have received in the name of France ; and 
presenting our Lord my heart for His throne, I there 
salute and adore Him as a King, supplicating Him 
not to abandon a nation which multiplies its alms to 
make known His Name among idolatrous nations. 
In all my sufferings, I pray Jesus to suffer in me, 
thus to appease His Father, and I likewise pray Him 
to perform in me all His actions; thus, uniting my¬ 
self to Him and suffering with Him, I await the 
hour marked out in His designs for the establishment 
of the Work of the Reparation. 

“ Sit nomen Domini benedictum! ” 

We perceive, from the mission assigned the 
Carmelite virgin, that the salvation of France is 
inseparably associated with the Work of the Repa¬ 
ration ; hence, our Lord offers for both the same 
exterior signs, the same efficacious means, namely, 
the cultus of Llis Adorable Face. Such is the sub¬ 
ject of one of the Sister’s letters, dated November 
22. “ I have received,” says she, “ notwithstanding 


268 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


my unworthiness, a new communication relative to 
our Lord’s Holy Face. Here is the substance of 
what this Divine Master has made me hear : ‘ My 
daughter, I take you this day for My steward, and 
again place My Holy Face in your hands, in order 
that you may unceasingly offer it to My Father for 
the salvation of France. Turn to profit, in manag¬ 
ing the affairs of My household, the Divine talent 
you possess in the gift of this Holy Face, for by It 
you obtain the conversion of many sinners ; nothing 
that you ask in virtue of this offering will be refused 
you. Ah ! if you did but know how pleasing is the 
sight of My Face to My Father ! ’ ” 

It is not difficult to understand the happiness she 
experienced on this occasion. She exclaims with joy, 
“ These communications urge me to redouble my zeal 
for our Fatherland, in having recourse to the means 
our Lord has made known to me. Incessantly do I 
offer the Eternal Father the Adorable Face of our 
Divine Saviour for the salvation of France, and 
for the establishment of the Work of the Rep¬ 
aration.” 

These three ideas, the Reparation, the salvation of 
France, and the Holy Face were, in her mind, never 
separated. “ I am ever occupied with them,” says 
she, “in peace and according to the inspirations of 
grace ; ” which inspirations of grace were active and 
fruitful, the Heavenly Spouse continuing to impart 
to the virgin of the cloister His light and instruc¬ 
tions. 

“ I know not how to tell you,” writes she to the 
Mother Prioress, December 21, “all that has passed 
in my soul for the last fifteen days, during which 


THE SINS OF FRANCE. 


269 


period, our Lord has poured upon this miserable sin¬ 
ner torrents of the most precious graces. No; it is 
not in my power; language capable of describing 
such favors is beyond the grasp of a poor creature 
like myself. ... I will impart to you, however, as 
nearly as I can, what Jesus has made me hear. 

“This Divine Director of my soul has said to 
me : ‘ My daughter, have more confidence and sim¬ 
plicity in My guidance, for I wish to nourish you 
Myself with the milk of My consolations. This 
disquietude, those fears of illusion, prevent Me from 
acting as freely in you as I desire/ Then, I con¬ 
fessed my fault, and our Lord took possession of my 
soul anew with increased power, and revealed to me 
several admirable secrets of His infinite Mercy. He 
began by impressing upon my mind the sense of 
His sovereign Justice, showing me the waters of His 
ire, but, at the same time, commanding me to drain 
them with His Divine Heart, that they might be 
lost in this Abyss of Mercy. 

“Another day, our Lord showing me the multi¬ 
tude of souls falling into Hell, invited me, in the 
most touching manner, to aid these poor sinners, 
blindly rushing into the eternal abyss, making me 
understand that His Mercy would open their eyes, 
were Christians to comply faithfully with the strict 
obligation attached to their profession as such—that 
of praying most fervently for the conversion of these 
misguided ones. He said to me, that if the rich of 
this world must render Him an account of their 
stewardship of the temporal goods confided to their 
charge, to help the indigent, how much more rigor¬ 
ous the account He would demand of a Carmelite, 
23* 


270 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


a Religious, rich with all the wealth of the Celestial 
Spouse, as to the use she had made of these treasures 
in succoring unfortunate sinners ! 

“Then, this amiable Saviour, displaying to me 
His boundless treasures composed of the Infinite 
merits of His Life and Passion, added, ‘ My 
daughter, I give you My Face and My Heart, I 
give you My Blood, I give you My Wounds; draw 
from them and pour out upon others ! draw from 
them and pour out upon others ! buy freely, for 
My Blood is the price of souls ! Oh ! what sorrow 
for My Heart to behold despised by men, remedies 
which have cost Me so dearly ! Ask of My Father 
as many souls as I have shed drops of blood in My 
Passion ! ’ 

“ Another day, He presented me His Holy Cross, 
telling me He had given life to all His children 
upon that bed of sorrow, and making me under¬ 
stand, that it was by the Cross borne for His love, 
and by prayer, I would obtain eternal life for those 
who were dead to grace, souls whose resurrection 
from sin He so ardently desired. Oh ! what long¬ 
ings I see in the Heart of Jesus for the salvation of 
sinnels ! And what vivid lights I have received 
from Him upon the efficacy of prayers offered for 
these wanderers ! But, what shall I say of the per¬ 
ception our Lord has given me of His Wounds 
and Blood, how describe the vivid impression thus 
stamped upon my heart ? Ah ! let us open these 
Divine Wounds with a fervent prayer, and this 
Precious Blood will flow most abundantly upon 
poor sinners ! 


THE SINS OF FRANCE. 


271 


“On another occasion, our Lord Jesus, placed 
my soul on the brink of Eternity, or rather at the 
gate of Time, that I might help the agonizing in 
that dread passage from Time to Eternity. Oh! 
when we reflect that whilst Divine Justice is always 
impending over the guilty, yet we may plead their 
cause, and move the Sovereign Judge in their 
behalf, how zealously should we not fly to the rescue 
of poor, dying sinners, who, although on the verge 
of eternal death, have still perhaps an hour’s life 
remaining, wherein the Divine Mercy, constrained 
by fervent and piercing supplications, may at last 
touch their hearts, and snatch them from perdition ! 
I feel myself most strongly attracted towards praying 
for sinners in their agony ! 

“Now, my Reverend Mother, I am going to 
speak to you of a wall of protection our Lord 
showed me, a mysterious wall protecting France 
against the shafts of the Divine Justice. Oh ! how 
this vision has filled me with thankfulness to the 
Infinite Mercy of God ! He made me understand 
that this wall, which reached to Heaven, was my 
especial daily devotion for the salvation of France 
(joined doubtless to the prayers and merits offered 
God by innumerable holy souls for the same inten¬ 
tion). This exercise consists in presenting the Face 
of Jesus to His Eternal Father, one hundred times 
a day, in honor of all the Mysteries of the Life and 
Death of this Divine Saviour. He told me, ‘that 
His object in giving me this vison was to encour¬ 
age me to persevere.’ ” 

The momentous and perilous state of the agoniz¬ 
ing revealed to the servant of God, had made a most 


272 LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 

vivid impression upon her ; and, subsequently, she 
returns to this work of spiritual mercy, her soul 
being again conducted to what she calls “ the gate or 
Time and Eternity.” 

January 10, 1847, she writes: “During the last 
three weeks, our Lord has somewhat diverted my 
attention from the great affairs of France, and kept 
me continually occupied in the spiritual assistance ot 
the dying. As her little servant, I accompany the 
most Blessed Virgin, who stands beside these trav¬ 
elers from Time to Eternity. Jesus has made known 
to me that He has given me to His august Mother 
for this great mission, the grandeur and beauty ot 
which I have heretofore not sufficiently appreciated ; 
but I now perceive that the time has come when I 
must work more zealously than ever for the salva¬ 
tion of souls, for it seems to me, our Lord told me I 
had but three years longer to live. As I am now 
thirty years of age,* I will employ the remaining 
years in imitation of the Saviour, who especially 
from this period of His Life, labored more earnestly 
and unceasingly than ever in seeking the estrayed 
sheep of the House of Israel. 4 Oh, if you knew 
the gift of God ! y says our Divine Master. What 
words of strength and counsel to me. He has en¬ 
lightened my soul concerning them, and I now begin 


* Sister Saint-Pierre died in the thirty-second year of her age, 
eighteen months after this revelation, aged thirty-one years and 
nine months. Hence, there is a slight contradiction between 
the real date of her death and that she foretold ; but the words, 
“ it seems to me,” with which she prefaces the prediction, leave 
a certain margin for the exact number of years. Subsequently, 
she announced the precise time of her death. 


THE SINS OF FRANCE. 


273 


to understand that precious Gift of the Father. Oh ! 
what may I not obtain for myself and my fellow- 
creatures, if I but strive to avail myself of these 
infinite merits, ignored, alas ! by the majority of those 
for whom He died! ‘ And for them I do sanctify 
Myself says Jesus to His Father; hence, let us offer 
the Divine Father, for the salvation of our souls, all 
that our Blessed Redeemer has done for us ; let us 
seek, in the Heavenly treasury of Plis merits, the 
wherewith to enrich our poverty. O, the blindness 
of men ! ardently pursuing the perishable treasures 
of Earth, whose united value could not purchase a 
single soul, yet ignoring and despising the Gift of 
God, the veritable treasure of the Christian, these 
infinite merits, which, presented at the bank of 
Divine Mercy, can purchase millions of immortal 
souls ! 

u It seems to me, that no one ought to pray, or to 
present himself before the Eternal Father, unpro¬ 
vided with a portion of the precious merits of His 
Son, that in virtue of this offering to His Divine 
Majesty, He be constrained to fulfil our Lord’s 
admirable promise : ‘Amen, Amen I say unto you , 
If you ash the Father anything , in My Name , He 
shall give it to you . 9 . . . 

“ As we have no merits or virtues of our own, let 
us offer God those of Jesus our Saviour, who has 
sanctified Himself for us. Let us offer His meek¬ 
ness, His humility, His patience, His obedience, 
His poverty, His fasts, His vigils, His zeal for the 
glory of His Father, and the salvation of souls! 
Let us offer also His Divine and efficacious prayers ;— 
He prayed during His whole mortal life, the Gos- 


274 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


pel telling us that even in the solitude of night He 
frequently withdrew to pray ; He prays in Heaven,— 
there He is ever presenting His Wounds to the 
Father for us ; and He prays in the Most Blessed 
Sacrament of the Altar. O mystery ineffable ! A 
Saviour-God, both praying for His creatures and 
yet invoked by them ! Hence, let us unite our 
prayers to those of the Incarnate Word, and they 
will be granted ; let us also, with redoubled fervor, 
offer to the Eternal Father, the Sacred Heart of 
Jesus, His Adorable Face and His Divine Wounds, 
His tears, His Blood, and His sweats, His journeys, 
His labors, His words and His silence;—all that 
He has suffered in each of the Mysteries of His 
Life ; and let us ever have our eyes fixed upon the 
Gift of God; that thus availing ourselves of this 
treasure unknown to the world, and collecting if 
possible, all the benefits we possess in Him, we may 
soon be rich, and able to bestow of our abundance 
upon poor sinners ; for we can offer the humility of 
Jesus for the conversion of the proud, His poverty 
for the avaricious, His mortifications for the sen¬ 
sual, His zeal in glorifying His Father for blas¬ 
phemers, mid all that He suffered from the false accu¬ 
sations of the Jews, reproaching Him with violating 
the Law of the Sabbath, for the conversion of the 
real transgressors of the Lord’s Holy Day. Oh ! Gift 
of God that I have too long ignored and neglected, 
thou art henceforth my sole treasure, for new riches 
do I daily discover in thee ! ” 

We cannot but admire these outbursts of Divine 
love, and transports of zeal flowing from the heart 
of the good Sister, inebriated with the charity of 


THE SINS OF FRANCE. 


275 


the Heart of Jesus. Truly could she finish her 
letter to the Mother Prioress, in the following 
words : “You see, my Reverend Mother, that our 
Lord in committing souls to my care, teaches me 
at the same time, the means I must use in saving 
them.” 


CHAPTER XVI. 


THE OBSTACLES. 

“I am not known, I am not loved, My Commandments are 
despised.” (Our Lord’s Words). 

Three years had already passed since Marie de 
Saint-Pierre, in our Lord’s name, had earnestly de¬ 
manded the establishment of the Work of the Repa¬ 
ration. The holy Carmelite had declared the ex¬ 
terior sign of the Work to be the Sorrowful Face of 
Christ, and in accordance with this idea, she com¬ 
posed Litanies of the Holy Face, canticles, and 
other prayers, in honor of It. After long trials, 
her worthy Superiors, more confirmed in the opin¬ 
ion that the communications she received were from 
the spirit of God, were desirous of carrying the pro¬ 
ject into execution; but, every one shrank from tak¬ 
ing the initiative. At last, it was decided to have 
a concise account of these divine communications 
printed, under the title of “ An Abridgment of 
Facts concerning the Establishment of the Work of 
the Reparation for Blasphemy.” This pamphlet, 
intended oi}!y for a few Carmelite convents and a 
small number of devout souls in the world, was 
276 


THE OBSTACLES. 


277 


submitted in mannscript to the Archbishop, who re¬ 
turned it with these words : 

“ My Reverend Mother, I not only do not disap¬ 
prove, but I fully endorse this idea; I believe it 
advisable, salutary, and even urgently necessary to 
follow the course you propose in giving these inspi¬ 
rations outlet ; and it also meets with my entire appro¬ 
bation, that to the Reparation for Blasphemy is added 
that for the profanation of God’s Holy Days. I 
have always deemed the primitive idea, which em¬ 
braced the Reparation of Blasphemy only, incom¬ 
plete and not sufficiently in keeping with the needs 
and circumstances of the times. I am pleased to 
find in this manuscript all that I could wish to. see 
therein.” 

In the same letter, the venerable Prelate gave 
permission for the printing of the little book, “ As¬ 
sociation of Prayers against Blasphemy,” and also 
granted a special authorization of the beautiful and 
devotional Litany of the Holy Face, composed by 
Sister Saint-Pierre under Divine inspiration, and 
which, from that time, was made known and cir¬ 
culated. 

Not wishing to make known either the name of 
the Sister, who was still living, or the convent in 
which she abode, it was deemed best, at first, to issue 
but fifty copies of the “ Abridgment of Facts,” and 
these not printed, but written by hand. M. Dupont, 
again making himself the medium of communica¬ 
tion between the cloister and the world, distributed 
some of these pamphlets among his intimate friends, 
and the Mother Prioress, on her part, sent them to 
the convents of their Order with which they had 
24 


278 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


most intercourse,* especially the Carmelites of Rouen, 
and of the Rue d’Enfer, Paris. 

Good Sister Saint-Pierre was greatly rejoiced at 
all this, thinking she beheld the realization of her 
wishes, and even persuading herself that her mission 
was accomplished. But the humble virgin was soon 
convinced of her mistake. “I hoped,” says she, 
“ that our Lord had granted my desires, and I would 
be no longer obliged to write ; but, it is not to be 
thus ; for He has communicated to me certain things 
He wishes made known, hence, I submit to his good 
pleasure : Fiat ! ” 

This communication, as we shall see, is of great 
importance, binding together two beautiful and holy 
devotions, equally dear to the Sister’s heart, and both 
occupying an essential place in the Work of the 
Reparation. The holy daughter of Carmel thus 
expresses herself concerning it : 

“Our amiable and Divine Saviour,” says she, 
“has made me hear His sighs upon His unappre¬ 
ciated love in the most Blessed Sacrament of the 
Altar, from lack of faith among Christians, and 
He has happily bound my heart and mind at His 
feet, that I may keep Him company in His loneli¬ 
ness, by adoring His most Holy Face hidden under 
the Eucharistic veil. Yes; it is by this august Sac¬ 
rament, Jesus, our Saviour, wishes to communicate 
to souls the virtue of His most Holy Face, which is 
there more dazzling than the sun ; and He has again 
promised me to imprint His Divine likeness upon 
the souls of those who honor It.” 


Life of M. Dupont, 1.1., p. 151. 


THE OBSTACLES. 


279 


In presenting anew to Sister Saint-Pierre the 
Mystery of His Holy Face, our Lord suddenly 
enlightens her with a perception, opening to her, 
she says, a beautiful vista upon the Reparation of 
Blasphemy, by showing the connection between His 
most Holy Name and His Adorable Face. “ Our 
Lord,” says she, “by means of a comparison as 
simple as it is appropriate, has made me understand 
that the impious, by their blasphemies, attack His 
Adorable Face, and the faithful glorify It, by homage 
and praise to His Name and His Sacred Person. 

“ The merit is in the person, but the accompany¬ 
ing glory is in the name which recalls this glory 
each time it is pronounced ; the merit or demerit of 
a person is ever attached to his name. 

“The most Holy Name of God expresses the 
Divinity, and all the perfections of the Creator; 
hence, blasphemers of this Sacred Name attack God 
Himself. Now let us ponder these words of Jesus : 
‘Believe you not that I am in the Father and the 
Father is in Me f ’ * Jesus having rendered Himself 
passible by the Incarnation, it is He who suffers in 
His Adorable Face, the outrages blasphemers offer 
to the Name of God His Father. Our Lord has 
shown me that there is indeed something mysterious 
upon the face of an honorable man who is despised. 
Yes, I see an intimate and inexplicable connection 
between his name and his face. Behold, in the 
presence of his enemies, a man distinguished for his 
name and merits ; he is not violently assaulted, but 
insults are heaped upon him, he is treated with con¬ 
tumely, and called by injurious epithets, instead of 

* John, XIV, 11. 


280 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


the titles justly his clue. Notice the face of the 
injured mau. Does it not seem to you, that all the 
opprobrious words uttered by his enemies are re¬ 
flected there, causing him to suffer a real torment? 
See how it burns with shame and confusion ! Is 
not the ignominy inflicted upon it harder to bear 
than physical tortures in other parts of his body? 
Here then is a faint picture of the Face of our Lord 
outraged by the blasphemies of the impious ! 

“ Let us represent to ourselves this same man in 
the presence of his friends, who, hearing of the 
insults he has received, hasten to console him by 
treating him as becomes his dignity, rendering hom¬ 
age to the greatness of his name, and addressing 
him by all the titles due his rank;—does not the 
face of that man express his appreciation of these 
praises? Happiness rests upon his brow, and is 
reflected from his radiant face, joy sparkles in his 
eyes, and a smile is upon his lips ; in a word, his 
faithful friends have effaced the burning anguish of 
that face outraged by its enemies, opprobrium has 
given place to glory !... 

“ This is what the friends of Jesus accomplish by 
the Work of the Reparation ; the glory they render 
to His Name rests upon that august Brow, and 
rejoices His most Holy Face, in the Blessed Sacra¬ 
ment of the Altar, more especially. My Reverend 
Mother, this comparison of our Lord has greatly 
enlightened my mind ; and I now see very clearly, 
both, that blasphemers inflict suffering on our 
Saviour’s Face, and that those who make Repara¬ 
tion delight and glorify It. Now I comprehend as 
I never did before, that man’s face is the resting 


THE OBSTACLES. 


281 


place of the glory and ignominy of his heart. 
Hence, I will apply myself with redoubled fervor 
to honor the Name and the most Holy Face of our 
Divine Saviour, Who invites me to this in so touch- 
mg a manner. 

Notwithstanding these new favors, and the im¬ 
portance attached to them by her Superiors, Sister 
Saint-Pierre was retained at her irksome and dis¬ 
tracting post of turn-Sister. In the month of Feb¬ 
ruary, 1847, a few days after the encouragement 
given the Work of the Reparation by His Grace, 
the Archbishop, feeling more than ordinarily 
fatigued, and her health and strength apparently 
giving way, she, in all simplicity, profited by it to 
ask an assistant, who under the title of second turn- 
Sister would share her (Sister Saint-Pierre’s) duties ; 
but, the Mother Prioress curtly denied the request, 
suggesting to her that it was probably dictated by a 
little • indolence and self-love, at the same time, 
ordering her to pray for the re-establishment of her 
health, so as to be able to resume her post at the 
end of fifteen days. 

Let us listen to the account she subsequently gives 
the Prioress of her feelings at this mortifying 
refusal. “ I received the order with respect,” says 
she, “but, acknowledging my weakness, I must say 
I was pained at finding you, on this occasion, lack¬ 
ing in your habitual tenderness, and the demon began 
tempting me. Happily, I went to expose my 
troubles to our Lord, shedding many tears, and 
telling Him that the office of turn-Sister was for me 
a perpetual martyrdom, because it continually drew 
me from Plis Presence. After explaining to this 
24* 


282 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


good Master all the sources of annoyance and sorrow 
in my employment, I said to Him : ( Yet, I desire, 
Lord, only what will glorify Thee and save the 
greatest number of souls. Thou didsj not descend 
from the Cross, and with how much less reason 
should I.’ Immediately, I made the act of obedi¬ 
ence, by asking Him for my restoration to health.” 

On the morrow, at Holy Communion, our Lord 
said to her : “ My daughter, does not solitude con¬ 
stitute your delight? During the first years you 
passed in Religion, without exterior employment, 
were not all your days feast-days ? ” “ Yes, Lord ! ” 

she answered. “Well, then, My daughter,” He 
continued, “ know that a Religious must be a living 
crucifix. Had you not these sorrows, wherewith 
would you save the souls I have placed in your 
hands?—As a proof that it is My Will you should 
retain this duty, and that it was I, Who, by the 
mouth of your Superioress, refused you an assistant, 
I will that you instantly recover your health ! Be 
consoled ; for all these labors will I give you souls.” 

The Thanksgiving after Mass was not yet ended, 
nor this mysterious colloquy between our Lord and 
His chosen servant, when suddenly the noisy door¬ 
bell rings, calling the holy turn-Sister with the voice 
of duty ! It was to her the signal for the sacrifice. 
“Ah! my Jesus,” said she, “I return to my post.” 

The favor asked, in obedience to her Superioress, 
had been granted. Sister Saint-Pierre’s health was 
restored, and she could now follow all the exercises 
of the Rule as formerly. In another communica¬ 
tion, our Lord said to her : “ I wish you to honor 
My servitude. I came not to be served, but to 


THE OBSTACLES. 


283 


serve ! ” Then, He added : u In times when bread 
is very scarce and dear, would not the father of a 
family, who, being so situated that he could work 
the vffiole day, labored but half of it, merit the re¬ 
proaches of his wife and children, by thus neglect¬ 
ing the opportunity of earning for them the neces¬ 
saries of life? Now, My daughter, apply this to 
yourself. You have children to nourish, as I have 
already told you, and you must earn their bread; 
they need your entire day’s labor, hence, do not ex¬ 
pose yourself, by your indolence, to the risk of hear¬ 
ing them reproach you on the Day of Judgment.” 

Another time, our Lord gave her the following 
instruction on the subject of her office : “ My daughter, 
you complain that you can no longer lead a life of 
solitude on account of your occupations ; but, do 
you fully understand what the solitary soul is? It 
is the soul, mistress of its passions ; hence, one that 
constantly immolates its own will by obedience, thus, 
participating in some measure, in the solitude of God, 
by living in His Holy Will, is truly the solitary 
soul ! And, on the contrary, a soul, even in the 
silence of retreat, merits not this title when agitated 
by the noise of its passions, and seeking pleasure in 
its own will, for know that self-will is the nurse of 
the passions.” 

“ Behold, my Reverend Mother,” she writes to 
the worthy Prioress, “ the instructions our Lord has 
had the goodness to impart to me ; and now, I no 
longer wish to have any other Will than His. 
Should it please God and my Superiors,* I am 


* Document B, Letter XX. 


284 


LIFE OF SISTER ,SAINT-PIERRE. 


willing to be turn-Sister all my life,” which posi¬ 
tion she indeed filled until her last illness. 

These “ children ” given her “ to nourish,” were 
the sinners whose salvation had been confided to her 
zeal, which spiritual work of charity the Divine 
Master frequently brought to her remembrance. 
“ For the last fortnight,” says she, (March 2), “ our 
Lord has had me in retreat ; but He has not com¬ 
municated Himself to my soul in any extraordinary 
way. I have been entirely occupied in renewing 
my interior, and in making acts of humility for my 
numberless infidelities. Yesterday, having made 
the Confession of all these faults, I this morning 
approached the Holy Table, with the firm resolu¬ 
tion of being more faithful in future. Like the 
‘ Prodigal Son/ I humbled myself, saying, ‘ Father, 
I have sinned ; ’ then, just as I was on the point of 
annihilating myself before the Majesty of our Lord, 
beholding Him clad in glory, He pronounced 
these words, ‘ Ah ! my daughter, rather regard Me 
covered with the wounds inflicted by sinners.’ And 
at that instant, it seemed to me, I beheld Him in 
this pitiable state, and He said to me, ‘ My daughter, 
approach and hearken to Me.’ 

“Then this Divine Saviour made me hear His 
plaintive lamentations, which have broken my 
heart, and caused me to shed floods of tears : ‘ I am 
not known, I am not loved, My Commandments 
are despised ! 9 And He added these words which 
make me shudder : ‘ Sinners are snatched from this 
world and precipitated into Hell like dust swept 
away by a whirlwind ! Have pity on your fellow- 
creatures, pray for them ; with your love, wipe the 


THE OBSTACLES. 


285 


Blood which flows from My wounds ; love Me, and 
fear not ; when you raise your heart to Me in love, 
I will receive it in My Hands, and there it is safe/ 

“ After this, He intimated that He was satisfied 
with my little retreat, adding : ‘ Since you perceive 
the benefit of your recent meditations in enlighten¬ 
ing you to discover so many of your defects, think 
of the condition of miserable sinners, who never 
meditate upon these great truths. Therefore, labor 
for yourself and them ; be to them as a mother, who 
cannot take nourishment without imparting it to 
her infant/” 

The humble and generous Carmelite ends her 
letter thus : “ The foregoing is what our Lord has 
made me understand ; Oh Î how vividly this picture 
of the eternal loss of sinners has impressed me! 
How ardently I desire to become a good Carmelite, 
that I may gain many souls to God ! Assist me, 
most Beverend Mother ; spare neither my pride nor 
self-love; it is fully time I should immolate this 
wicked nature, to put on Christ our Lord.” * 

Thus, in divers ways, did the Divine Master make 
use of His servant for the salvation of souls, the 
end of the universal Reparation, He accomplished 
by His coming into this world and His death upon 
the Cross! “He caused me to labor,” says the 
Sister, “ sometimes in one field, sometimes in an¬ 
other, according to His good pleasure. Fifteen 
days ago He put me in retreat, and forbade me to 
come out until He had called me. During this 
period, He showed me all the tares in the field of 


* Document B, Letter XXI. 


286 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


my own soul, and I made a Confession of my 
faults.” Our Lord was daily preparing her for the 
especial Work, whose establishment He had an¬ 
nounced to her. This project appeared now to be 
slumbering ; even at Tours, since the distribution of 
the pamphlets already mentioned, the interest it 
then excited seemed gradually to have died away. 
But in the beginning of the month of March, 1847, 
the Sister writes as follows “ Behold, I have again 
heard the voice of our Lord calling me anew to the 
mission for the Reparation of blasphemies. This is 
now the third time He has invited me. Some time 
ago He assured me that the Work would be estab¬ 
lished, and this communication has filled me with 
such confidence, that were I to behold earth and 
Hell opposing the Work, it would not lessen my 
hopes of its ultimate accomplishment, for they are 
founded on the word of Him, Who is Omnipotent. 

“ Moreover, Jesus has told me that He permitted 
the demon to cross His works, thereby to test 
the confidence of His servants. To-day, He has 
said: ‘ Rejoice, My*daughter, for there is about to 
dawn upon earth one of the most beautiful Works under 
the sun ; offer My Heart to obtain it.’ ” 

Our Lord refers to the Work of the Reparation 
for Blasphemy, by the merits of His Sorrowful 
Face. The Redemption of the human race, ope¬ 
rated upon‘the Cross by Jesus Christ, is, beyond 
doubt, the master-piece, by excellence, of Divine 
wisdom and love; the mind of man can conceive 
nothing more grand or astonishing than that the 
Word should become Incarnate in the womb of a 
Virgin, and die, crucified for the salvation of sin- 


THE OBSTACLES. 


287 


ners; assuredly, this Work, once visibly accom¬ 
plished on Calvary, and ever perpetuated through 
the Church, is the most perfect and beautiful “ under 
the sun.” 

But, since the great Sacrifice of the Cross, gene¬ 
ration has succeeded generation, and, in our day, the 
spirit of evil, as developed in pride and sensuality, 
has inflicted upon contemporaneous society two 
wounds, the deadly extent and character of which 
have been hitherto unperceived—radical impiety and 
absolute incredulity, represented by blasphemy under 
all its forms, and by the profanation of all that is 
holy, especially, the violation of Sunday and Holy 
Days of obligation. In order to cope with this 
strange, Satanic pestilence peculiar to our age, and 
to expiate the abominations which are its conse¬ 
quences, the Incarnate Word, sole Mediator, and 
sovereign Repairer of society and souls, offers us 
His Divine Face, that portion of His Holy Human¬ 
ity most vividly reflecting His thoughts and the 
affections of His Heart, and whereby He has not 
only exteriorly appeared more like to man, but, 
moreover, has suffered most from the ignominies 
and sorrows of His Sacred Passion. It is thus He 
asks a new Work for the atonement of new crimes. 
This Work of the Reparation is so intimately con¬ 
nected with the Redemption of man, so identified 
with the expiation on Calvary that we may really 
consider it a renewal and continuation of the same; 
and, hence, notwithstanding the feeble, unworthy 
instruments employed, it may justly be termed the 
“ most beautiful of works,” as it is, in reality, the 
most necessary for the needs of the present age. 


288 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


As the Sister was much troubled concerning the 
many and great obstacles to be overcome, the Divine 
Saviour said to her: “It is only the falling mist of 
a fine day.” And He urged her to abandon her¬ 
self anew into His hands, to suffer interiorly and 
exteriorly all that He willed. “ He has reminded 
me” says she, “that I am only as a weak instrument 
which He wields at will. Ah ! how true indeed : 
for I can labor at this Work, only by an especial 
grace, when He wills, and as He wills. I now feel 
my soul under the influence of this grace, hence, 
resigning myself entirely to our Lord’s guidance, I 
shall do nothing of my own spirit. 

“ Sit nomen Domini benedictum!” 

The “ Abridgment of Facts,” sent to a few Car¬ 
melite monasteries, and distributed among their 
friends in the city of Tours had already borne fruit, 
as evinced in an earnest desire to see the Work of 
the Reparation established. This was the little mus¬ 
tard seed, destined ere long to grow and spread itself 
over the world. 

However, as notwithstanding the discretion re¬ 
commended to the parties concerned, the contents of 
the aforesaid pamphlet, when distributed, had excited 
some undesirable attention by reason of the political 
events of the times, the Diocesan Authority was 
quite displeased, and Mgr. Morlot, after writing to 
the Rev. Mother Prioress that the matter had been 
carried too far and beyond his intentions, finally im¬ 
posed silence, as well on the Carmelite convent, as on 
M. Dupont. Both, submitting respectfully to the 
Archbishop’s wishes, the distribution of the pam¬ 
phlet was immediately discontinued. 


THE OBSTACLES. 


289 


But, as God willed, the first and legitimate impulse 
tending to bring about so desirable an end had 
already been given, and was to be manifested in two 
great Works of Reparation, of which we shall soon 
speak—the one at Langres, and that of Mile. 
Dubouché. 

Notwithstanding all this, the “ instrument of God” 
remained unknown as heretofore, her name having 
been revealed, outside the cloister, only to M. Du¬ 
pont and a few pious and intimate friends of the 
Community, whilst in the interior of the monastery, 
the secret continued to be inviolably kept, none save 
the Prioress and her secretary having any knowledge 
of these celestial communications. This necessary 
confidante, the secretary, was Sister Marie Theresa 
of St. Joseph, who afterwards succeeded Mother 
Marie of the Incarnation as Prioress. She had been 
intimately connected with Marie de Saint-Pierre, both 
having entered the convent about the same time, and 
partly made their Novitiate together ; and our Lord’s 
especial designs over His servant did not long escape 
the observant eye of the friend who was seldom out 
of her company ; hence, she was not astonished when 
subsequently made acquainted with all that had taken 
place. She rendered our Sister several little kind¬ 
nesses which were repaid by an affectionate regard. 
Other important services continued to signalize this 
holy friendship, even to the day, when, having be¬ 
come Prioress, Mother Teresa of St. Joseph was 
empowered to withdraw from obscurity the writings 
of her former companion, a precious deposit, placed 
under seal thirty years previously, and to open the 
riches of these too-long concealed treasures, to those 
25 


290 LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 

pious souls capable of receiving and profiting by 
them. 

Although the prohibition of the Archbishop of 
Tours had arrested the progress of the Work of the 
Reparation outside the convent, yet, within its en¬ 
closure, the humble confidante of Jesus continued to 
receive none the less lights on the subject. 

Rendering an account of the “sad impressions 
her soul experiences,” the servant of God writes as 
follows, March 14: “Our Lord, after Holy Com¬ 
munion, to-day, has made me understand that the 
scourges with which we have been lately afflicted, 
were only the forerunners of those His justice is 
preparing for us, if His wrath be not appeased. He 
has shown me the sins of blasphemy and profanation 
of Sunday, under the figures of two pumps, with 
which men, guilty of these crimes, are drawing the 
waters of His wrath upon France, exposing them¬ 
selves to be submerged therein, if this Work of the 
Reparation, which His mercy has given us as a 
means of salvation, be not established. Then, He 
told me that the Society, known as Communists, had 
made but one outbreak. ‘ Oh ! if you knew their 
secret and diabolical machinations/ He added, ‘ their 
anti-Christian principles ! They await but the favor¬ 
able moment to inflame all F rance. Hence, to obtain 
mercy, ask, then, for the Work of the Reparation 
from Him who has the right to establish it/ ‘ But, 
my Divine Master/ I answered, ‘ my Superiors have 
already asked it/ ‘This is not sufficient/ said our 
Lord, ‘ it is you I have chosen as the instrument, 
and you who must ask its establishment for Me and 
in My Name/ ” 


THE OBSTACLES. 


291 


The holy Carmelite, having thus twice received 
the order from our Lord to write herself to the 
Archbishop, consulted the Mother Prioress to know 
if she must do so ; but the latter dissuaded her from 
it, under pretext that Monseigneur must not be im¬ 
portuned in the midst of his numerous and weighty 
duties. 

“ After Holy Communion this morning,” says the 
Sister, (March 19), “ I laid before our Lord the 
counsel you gave me of not writing to His Grace, 
the Archbishop. Here is the substance of the 
Divine Master’s answer : ‘ My daughter, I have a 
great love for obedience ! Be submissive, that thus 
may be recognized the spirit by which you are led. 
Nevertheless, I desire that the communications I 
impart to you be made known to your prime 
Superior.’ I now said to our Lord, ‘ Permit me, 
my Divine Master, to ask you with all the sim¬ 
plicity of a child, to explain what you mean by the 
establishment of the Work which I am commanded 
to ask of Monseigneur . You know He has already 
given it the aid of his approval. He answered, ‘ If 
this Work be not built upon a solid rock, the foun¬ 
dation will not be secure ; without its own especial 
Brief, it will languish and die. But, if carried out 
by the formality of a Brief, it will soon be estab¬ 
lished in all the cities of France, and it behooves 
him, who first put his hand to the Work to bring it 
to a successful issue.’ 

“ As I expressed fears of being deceived in ask¬ 
ing this Work in His Name, our Lord bade me 
notice, that it occupied my mind only when He 
Himself inspired it; and therefore, I should feel 


292 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


perfectly secure. Then, telling me He was about to 
explain His conduct towards me by means of a 
comparison, He showed me a bow and arrow, which 
He said was the emblem of my soul in His hands ; 
and He made me see how He directed His bow and 
arrow at will, towards this side or that, for the ful¬ 
filment of His designs. ‘ It was to serve Me as an 
instrument in the Work of the Reparation/ He 
added, ‘ that I created you ; therefore, be consoled ; 
I will not leave you long upon earth, after the 
Work is established, and My mercy will recom¬ 
pense all your little labors.’ 

Then, opening her heart to her worthy Mother 
Prioress, the admirable and courageous nun ex¬ 
claims,Permit me most humbly to solicit the aid 
of your prayers ; for I assure you, I stand in great 
need of them; I bring forth this Work only through 
prayer and anguish. When our Lord again charged 
me with it, He said, ‘ Pray without ceasing for its 
establishment , offer yourself entirely to Me, ready to 
suffer in body and soul , all that I will for the accom¬ 
plishment of My designs’ The realization of these 
mysterious words followed close upon their utter¬ 
ance, for since that moment, I have been upon the 
cross. But should I dare complain, I, who have so 
often told Jesus that I desired to give the last drop 
of my blood for the accomplishment of His designs 
in this Work of the Reparation? Oh! how un¬ 
worthy I am of suffering for so noble an end,—the 
glory of God and the salvation of souls ! I, how¬ 
ever, confess to you, my most Reverend Mother, 
that often I am weak enough to shed tears ; but, I 
entreat our Lord to pay no heed to these out¬ 
bursts of poor, weak nature ! 99 


CHAPTER XVII. 


THE COMMUNISTS. 

“Hide France in the secret of Thy Face, and grant her mercy 
for the glory of Thy Name.” (The Sister’s Prayer). 

Secret Societies, which at the present day are the 
bane of France, and openly wage war against the 
Church of God, had for a long time plotted in the 
dark, successively giving birth to political and 
religious sects, whose pernicious influence insidi¬ 
ously permeated the entire world. France, unhap¬ 
pily, has been the principal centre, and the most 
active furnace of such machinations, for from her 
midst, from Paris especially, has the revolutionary 
and Anti-Social spirit, diffused itself over the whole 
of Europe, assuming divers names according to the 
country and times, such as Socialism, Liberalism, 
Nihilism. Towards the end of the reign of Louis- 
Philippe, the period we have now reached in the 
life of Sister Saint-Pierre, it was called Commun¬ 
ism. By degrees, the Communist party had invaded 
the irreligious press, and now counted organs and 
writers of some celebrity in the schools of philoso¬ 
phy, and the current literature of the day. Several 
of them, in different places, had even tried to bring 
about the realization of their dangerous Utopian 
25* 293 


294 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


schemes. Especially by its occult manœuvres was 
the faction growing more powerful and dangerous. 
Having skilfully prepared its underground mines, 
the moment of the explosion was near, and the 
government, as is often the case in such circum¬ 
stances with parties most interested, suspected noth¬ 
ing. France unconsciously slept upon a volcano. 
From the depths of her retreat, enlightened from 
On High, the humble daughter of Carmel, ever 
solicitous for the needs of her Fatherland, and the 
salvation of souls, was sounding the alarm to the 
sacred sentinels, and pointing out to them the means 
of averting these perils. The communications she 
received on the subject of Communism form a sepa¬ 
rate series, the following extracts from which will 
suffice to give our readers some idea of them. 
March 29, 1847, she writes: “Our Lord has given 
me a new mission, which would terrify me were I 
anything but a feeble instrument in His powerful 
hands. Knowing this, however, I am perfectly at 
peace. 

“He has commanded me to make war on the 
Communists , telling me that they are the enemies of 
the Church, and of her Christ, and making me 
understand, that the most of these wolfish men had 
been born in the Church, whose bitter, open ene¬ 
mies they now are ! He then added : i I have made 
known to you that I hold you in My Hands as an 
arrow. I now wish to speed that arrow against my 
enemies, and I give you wherewith to combat them, 
the weapons of My Passion,—My Cross of which 
they are the foes, and the other instruments of My 
tortures. Meet them with the artlessness of a child, 


THE COMMUNISTS. 


295 


and the courage of a valiant soldier, and receive for 
this mission, the benediction of the Father, of the 
Son, and of the Holy Ghost/ 

“Then, I supplicated the most Blessed Virgin, 
that Tower of David on which a thousand buck¬ 
lers hang, to be the depositary of these Divine 
weapons, which had been given me by her dearly 
Beloved Son. Our Lord, also favored me on this 
subject, with several other revelations which I would 
find some difficulty in expressing intelligibly to others. 
‘ Lord/ I said, ‘ arm me for the combat, and teach 
me to wield Thy instruments/ He answered me : 
‘The weapons of My enemies scatter death, but 
Mine give life/ Here is the prayer I often recite 
for this intention : ‘ Eternal Father, I offer Thee 
the Cross of Our Lord Jesus Christ, and all the 
instruments of His Holy Passion, that Thou mayest 
put division in the camp of Thy enemies, for as Thy 
Beloved Son hath said, ‘ a kingdom divided against 
itself shall fall/ ” * 

Behold now, our little Sister entered upon the 
arena—she prays, she opposes the Cross and the 
instruments of the Passion to the fury of the enemies 
of God. 

To animate His servant in this mystical combat, 
the Saviour reveals to her the designs of these secret 
societies, and their anti-Christian principles. Holy 
Thursday, April 1, He said to her : “ The soldier, 
who knowing the origin of the war in which he is 
enlisted to be the injury offered his King, burns with 
indignation to avenge it, and intrepidly arms him- 

* Document D, Letter of March 29, 1847. 


296 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


self for* the fray. Think, now, My daughter, of 
the outrages inflicted on Me by this society of Com¬ 
munists ; it is they who have dragged Me from My 
Tabernacles, profaned My Sanctuaries, and laid hands 
upon the anointed of the Lord ,♦ but their machina¬ 
tions are vain, their designs shall be foiled ! Have 
they not committed the crime of Judas? They have 
sold Me for money! Let not this knowledge be 
sterile in you, for I acquaint you with it to animate 
you to the combat. Act in a spirit of simplicity, 
for if you reason too much, you thereby fail to be a 
proper instrument in My hands. Think more of 
the glory that will be rendered Me by the Celestial 
Court, for having combated such enemies with so 
puny an instrument ! ” 

“ This, my Reverend Mother, is the substance of 
what our Lord made known to me yesterday ; and to¬ 
day, Holy Thursday, blessed anniversary of the in¬ 
stitution of the ineffable Sacrament of the Eucharist, 
wherein He is exposed to the outrages and profana¬ 
tions of His enemies, I am going to offer anew a 
Reparation to this Divine Saviour, in the Adorable 
Sacrament of His love, for these profanations and 
sacrilegious thefts, the sad remembrance of which, 
too easily lost sight of by me, alas ! He has recalled 
to my mind.'* 

A few days later she writes : 

“ I have entered the arena to combat the enemies 
of God, and peace has returned to my soul, since I 
have received (if I may thus express myself,) the 
banner of obedience. Under this standard I am 
secure, and I no longer fear the demon. Jesus gives 
me grace to raise my batteries ; to-day, after Holy 


THE COMMUNISTS. 


297 


Communion, He encouraged me to the combat, 
promising me a Cross of Honor, which He said 
would open Heaven to me, were I but faithful. He 
has also promised me the gold of charity, by which 
I have understood some tribulations reserved for me 
in His mercy, whence I would also receive the grace 
to suffer them with patience and love. May His 
Holy Name be blessed ! 

“ But, my Reverend Mother, after combating, with 
all my strength, God’s enemies during these three 
Feasts, I am now almost sorry for having done so, 
and I give you the reason,—it is because I fear hav¬ 
ing uttered imprecations against them. I well know 
that the holy King David has done as much (wit¬ 
ness, for instance, Psalm CVIII.) ; but I am not 
sure that the same would be permitted me. I said 
what it seemed to me our Lord inspired ; if it be 
wrong and I am mistaken, I shall do so no more. 
The following is the detailed account : I begin by 
placing my soul in our Lord’s hands ; then, praying 
Him to bend His bow and launch His arrows at His 
enemies, I combat them, first, by His Cross and the 
instruments of His Passion, in the manner He has 
taught me ; then, by the virtue of the Holy Name 
of God. And it is just here I feel disquieted 
about the imprecations which I have repeated hun¬ 
dreds of times. I had no intention of invoking 
evil upon these guilty creatures themselves; I 
desired to attack only their malice and passions, to 
kill in them the old man. Here are the words of 
invocation : 

“ ‘ Let God arise and His enemies be dispersed, and 
all that hate Him fly from before His Face.’ 


298 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


“‘Let the thrice Holy Name of God overthrow 
their designs/ 

“ ‘ Let the Sacred Name of the Living God sow 
dissension among them/ 

“‘Let the terrible Name of the God of Eternity 
annihilate all their impiety/ 

“ I continue this shower of spiritual missiles, and 
when I have well beaten them down, I add : ‘ I 

wish not the death of the sinner, but that he be 
converted and live. Father, pardon them, for they 
know not what they do/ 

“I perform this exercise without any mental 
effort and with great facility ; because I simply give 
myself up to the grace which guides my soul.” 

It is not without interest for us to learn something 
of the good Sister’s interior dispositions, whilst 
engaged in these generous spiritual labors so strongly 
agitating her in behalf of France and the salvation 
of souls, and we quote the following extract from 
the account she must needs give her Superiors : 

“ The way in which our Lord leads me is very 
painful to nature, exacting from me a continual in¬ 
terior mortification. I rarely have spiritual consola¬ 
tions ; the communications I receive serve rather to 
increase my sufferings, since they so often show me 
the irritated Justice of God, the eternal loss of 
numberless sinners, and France on the brink of an 
abyss. Days of wrath are approaching, and yet 
this Work of the Reparation, which I have carried 
in my soul nearly four years, under sorrows, that 
God alone can know, for He is the Author thereof, 
has not appeared. O my God! arise, it is Thy 
cause as well as ours we pray Thee to defend, hide 


THE COMMUNISTS. 


299 


France in the secret of Thy Holy Face, and grant 
mercy for the glory of Thy Name ! Yes, en¬ 
lightened from On High, I firmly believe that on 
the establishment of this Work depends the future 
of France. I behold it always linked to France, as 
decreed by the infinite Mercy of God for her salva¬ 
tion; wherefore, I would willingly give even the 
last drop of my blood to obtain its establishment, 
for thus would our Lord be appeased and souls in¬ 
numerable saved. These are the sentiments inspir¬ 
ing me, and which I now make known for conscience* 
sake. I declare that none but God has prompted 
this idea, and that I was entirely ignorant of the 
existence of a similar Work in Rome. I became 
acquainted with the fact only a long time after the 
initiative of mine, and then by an especial interpo¬ 
sition of Providence. I also declare, that I have 
never been influenced by any one to ask its establish¬ 
ment, but on the contrary, thanks be to God, I have 
had the happiness of receiving, on this subject, from 
our worthy Superiors, reprimands and humiliations. 
I further declare that the connection existing between 
these successive communications is from Divine in¬ 
spiration, and not from my imagination ; for imme¬ 
diately on receiving them, I make note of them, 
which I give to our Mother, so as to be relieved, and 
I then think no more about the matter, except to pray 
that God’s designs may be fulfilled. I dare not even 
converse with our Reverend Mother on this subject, 
as the making known these lights causes me great 
confusion. When this mission was confided to me 
by our Lord, I asked Him two graces, which He 
has had the mercy to grant me : 1. That these com- 


300 LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 

munications might never occasion me sentiments of 
vanity ; 2. That I might never be known as God’s 
instrument therein. Our Lord, who directs my 
soul, takes such especial care to show me so clearly 
my misery and nothingness, that it is impossible for 
me to feel otherwise than covered with confusion at 
sight of these extraordinary graces and my continual 
ingratitude. I leave to my worthy Superiors the 
task of obtaining the establishment of this Work; 
my mission being to submit to them all the lights I 
receive from God, and to pray for the accomplish¬ 
ment of His great designs for the glory of His 
Name. This is why I have copied the letters 
written in this narration : Sit nomen Domini bene - 
dictum” 

Shortly after, she adds, “This Work has two 
aims, the Reparation of Blasphemy, and of the Vio¬ 
lation of Sunday and the Holy Days of obligation, 
profaned by servile works; consequently, it embraces 
atonement for the outrages offered God, and also 
the sanctification of His Holy Name. 

“ Now, it will doubtless be asked if the devotion 
of the Holy Face must be united to the Work? 
Yes, for It constitutes the riches and most precious 
ornament of the Work, our Lord having given It 
to be the object of the Associates’ adoration, so that 
this Adorable Face, which is in some sort despised 
and outraged anew by the blasphemies of sinners, as 
He Himself complains, be honored and worshipped 
by an especial cultus. Secondly, our Lord presents 
His Holy Face to the Work, that thereby the Asso¬ 
ciates may become all-powerful with God, by the 
frequent offering they will make to Him of this 


THE COMMUNISTS. 


301 


August and Sacred Face of His Beloved Son, so 
agreeable to Him that It infallibly appeases His 
wrath, and draws down upon poor sinners the foun¬ 
tains of His infinite Mercy. Yes, when the Eternal 
Father looks upon the Face of His Well-Beloved 
Son, which was buffeted and covered with ignominy, 
when He beholds that sacred Head, once crowned 
with thorns, emblem of the sins of men which Jesus 
has taken upon His Head in order to save His 
members, this sight, as our Lord one day told me, 
stirs the very depths of the Father’s Mercy. Let 
us endeavor to profit by so precious a Gift, and pray 
this Divine Saviour to hide us during evil days in 
the secret of His Holy Face. 

“Behold , 0 God , our Protector , and look on the Face 
of Thy Christ.” 

The Spirit of God continued to enlighten the 
humble Carmelite upon the principal object of her 
mission. The Divine Master was ever urgent, and 
from time to time, suggested to her new motives 
of encouragement. 

One day, (May 5, 1847,) when she asked of Him 
the establishment of the Work of the Reparation, 
He answered, “ that it was through the hands of the 
most Blessed Virgin, He would grant her this favor.” 

“ The Saviour,” says she, “ made me understand 
that He had placed all things in her hands, and that 
it was she who would obtain for us the Brief from 
the Sovereign Pontiff. This Work of the Repara¬ 
tion is so necessary to France, and gives so much 
glory to God, that He wishes His most holy Mother 
to have the honor of bestowing it upon this king¬ 
dom, as a new pledge of Divide Mercy. 

26 


302 LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 

“ Let lis then seek the most Blessed Virgin, who 
is the Treasurer of God’s graces ; let us unceasingly 
remind her that France is consecrated to her and her 
own. Let us redouble our zeal for this Work, and 
let not difficulties cast us down ; as for myself, our 
Lord has given me a boundless confidence. Sit 
Nomen Domini benedictum ! ” 

On the Feast of Pentecost, (May 23,) as Sister 
Saint-Pierre was kneeling before the Blessed Sacra¬ 
ment, imploring our Lord to make known to her 
His Will, offering herself to Him to suffer whatso¬ 
ever He might ordain, even, to the shedding of her 
blood, she received the following communication : 

“ Our Lord has made me understand,” says she, 
“ that He desired only my heart and will, and that 
the more I loved Him, the more graces would I 
obtain from His liberality for the accomplishment 
of His designs. Shortly after this, taking stronger 
possession of the powers of my soul, the Divine 
Master favored me with an admirable light upon 
the beauty and excellence of this Work of the Rep¬ 
aration. I beheld it under the figure of a gold 
mine, and our Lord told me I must be assiduous in 
‘ working it,’ as only by unremitting labor would 
success be attained. The Divine Master also said to 
me : ‘ Oh ! if souls only knew the boundless wealth 
I have reserved for those who work at My mine, I 
would certainly never lack laborers. Make known 
this communication.’ 

“Then, this good Saviour showed me, for my 
consolation, that my labors in this mine for the past 
four years had not been unfruitful. I saw that the 
numerous Prayers of the Reparation already dis- 


THE COMMUNISTS. 


303 


tributed, the Manual and other objects concerning 
the Work, were as gold drawn from this precious 
mine, and our Lord addressed me these consoling 
words concerning the Prayers of the Reparation : 
‘ This new harmony has charmed My ear, ravished 
the Angels, and appeased my wrath ; yet I repeat 
what I said at the beginning —I desire the establish¬ 
ment of the Work’ 

“ This most encouraging declaration filled my heart 
with joy; although my face was bathed in tears, 
they were tears of extreme sweetness. I answered : 
‘ My Blessed Saviour, if I now make known that 
Thy anger has been appeased, I very much fear such 
information may be injurious to the project, by 
tending to cool the zeal of persons already not 
greatly inclined to exert themselves for its accom¬ 
plishment/ Our Lord answered : ‘Ah ! my daugh¬ 
ter, what do you say ? One would evince but little 
love for Me, did not this knowledge inflame him 
with renewed ardor for the perfecting of what is so 
agreeable to Me that it appeases My wrath/ He has 
greatly enlightened me touching the sublimity of the 
Association, and of His preference for it over the 
others already established in the Church, because of its 
end being the double one of atonement for the outrages 
offered the Divinity by blasphemy and by the viola¬ 
tion of Sunday, comparing all those formerly insti¬ 
tuted to the ordinary wine first served at the marriage 
feast of Cana, and this, the last, to the miraculous 
wine produced by His fiat. I told our Lord there 
were great obstacles opposing His design ; but He 
consoled and reassured me, saying that all these 
would but add to its splendor ; that I must tell my 


304 LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 

Mother Prioress to continue her efforts and to take 
advantage of every favorable opportunity for the 
furtherance of the Work. He has made me under¬ 
stand that it was necessary to pray, desire and 
suffer. 

“ This, my most Reverend Mother, is, as nearly as 
I can express to you, what has taken place in my 
soul. In conclusion, our Divine Saviour said to 
me : ‘ It is to My holy Mother you owe the commu¬ 
nication just received ; it is she who has obtained it 
for you ; continue to honor her/ Live Jesus and 
Mary ! ” 

On the morrow, the Sister wrote : “ The letter I 
handed you yesterday, on the subject of the grace I 
received from the Lord concerning the great Work 
consecrated to His Name, failed to satisfy my heart, 
which experiences the need of pouring out and 
expanding its feelings, for the effects of this commu¬ 
nication are so great, and have so increased the 
strength of my soul, that all Hell armed against the 
Work, and all mankind united, were this possible, 
could not shake my confidence. ‘ If God is for us, 
who shall he against us $ 9 

“ In God’s own appointed time all will yield to 
the sway of His sovereign power. Oh ! how excel¬ 
lent this Work! and how sublime! What benefits 
inestimable are reserved for the defenders of the 
Holy Name of God ! Would I could publish, 
throughout the world, the truths my soul learned on 
that memorable Feast of Pentécost, through great 
lights, which words are incapable of expressing. 
Oh ! that I had the eloquence of a St. Bernard to 
urge all to enroll themselves in this holy Crusade ! 


THE COMMUNISTS. 


305 


Centuries ago, when the Lord wished to raise an 
army of valiant soldiers to battle against the enemies 
of the Holy Land, His faithful servant, St. Bernard, 
preached this Crusade, and with marvellous success ; 
the same Lord now asks for courageous soldiers to 
defend the glory of His Name, blasphemed and 
despised by His enemies. Alas ! shall He find none? 

“ Unlike the former, this modern Crusade does 
not call upon us to quit our hearthstone, to arm our¬ 
selves with cuirass and buckler, or to expose our life 
in battle. No ; in our sacred militia, the Cross of 
Jesus Christ is the sole weapon with which we com¬ 
bat the enemies of His Name, and this Sacred Name 
Itself, full of virtue and strength, our Divine 
rampart. That we may succeed in our holy under¬ 
taking, let us address ourselves with a boundless con¬ 
fidence to the glorious Virgin Mary, supplicating her, 
the Queen of the armies of God , and more terrible to 
the demons than an army in battle array, to place 
herself at our head. It is this amiable Mother who 
obtained for me, notwithstanding my unworthiness, 
the signal favor I, yesterday, received from her most 
Beloved Son. May she be blessed forever ! 

“Being at the feet of this August Mother, a few 
days ago, I felt inspired to invoke her under the 
title of Our Lady of the Holy Name of God; then, 
I made her a crown composed of seventy-two invo¬ 
cations, to honor the precious years of her most holy 
life, at the end of each decade recalling to her the 
words which she herself pronounced in her magnifi¬ 
cent Canticle : < He that is mighty hath done great 
things to me; and Holy is His Name ! ’ After these 
words I added : ‘ O ! most holy and worthy Mother 
26 * 


306 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


of God, powerful Advocate of Christians, I place 
the cause of the Holy Name of God in thy mater¬ 
nal hands/ This little devotion, I think, touched 
the loving heart of my tender Mother, for, whilst 
reciting it, I felt the influence of a very especial 
grace in my soul. ‘O holy Virgin !’ said I, ( deign 
to receive this new title, for thou art truly Our Lady 
of the Holy Name of God, since thou art the 
Daughter of the Father, the Mother of the Son, and 
the Spouse of the Holy Ghost, and it is thyself who 
hast proclaimed that He hath done great things to 
thee, He whose Name' is Holy ! Y es, O Divine 
Virgin ! thou art the honor and glory of the Holy 
Name of God, because thou art the Masterpiece of 
His hands Who hath operated marvels in thee. 
Therefore, shall I call thee Our Lady of the Holy 
Name of God/ 

“ It is thus, my Révérend Mother, I lay open my 
heart to the most Blessed Virgin, to try and interest 
her (if I may thus express myself,) in the Work of 
the Reparation, respectfully reminding her that she, 
more than any other, is obliged to labor for the 
glory of the Holy Name of God—she whom He 
has favored more than any other ; and I doubt not 
but she will bring about the establishment of this 
Work, which our Lord has compared to the miracu¬ 
lous wine served at the marriage Feast of Cana, 
which wine, we should remember, was obtained of 
her Divine Son through Mary’s intercession. Mean¬ 
while, I must humbly pray you to invite all who 
have this Work at heart, to unite with me in saluting 
the Blessed Virgin under the title of Our Lady of 
the Holy Name of God/’ 


THE COMMUNISTS. 


307 


In the form of a little memento to the glory of 
the Blessed Virgin, the good Sister adds: “Our 
Lord sent me to His holy Mother, that I might 
receive from her blessed hands the favor I had been 
so long soliciting for the greater glory of the Holy 
Name of God. I, therefore, with unwavering con¬ 
fidence, deposited my hopes and fears in the heart of 
this Mother of Mercy, supplicating her to be my 
Advocate in the cause of God and urging her to 
assist the accomplishment of the Work, during this 
beautiful month of May which is consecrated to her. 
Nor did I invoke her in vain ; she saw the tears of 
her little servant, she heard her sighs and vows! 
and very soon, she inspired one of her servants, the 
Right Reverend Bishop of Langres, who had heard 
of this projected Work, to take a lively interest in 
it. His zeal for the honor of the Holy Name of 
God causing him to labor with all possible ardor for 
the establishment of the Association, his efforts were 
crowned with success. The rules were drawn up 
June 28, 1847, on the Vigil of the Feast of the 
Blessed Apostles Saints Peter and Paul ; and what 
may be regarded as a proof of the Blessed Virgin’s 
intercession, is the fact that the Association was 
canonically and solemnly established on the 16th of 
July, Feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel. * 

* It is no less worthy of note that the Rules of Saint-Dizier bear 
the date of June 28, (1847) ; the erection of the Confraternity 
at Tours, that of June 29, (1876) ; the one completing the other, 
always under the protection of St. Peter, Head of the Church. 
Likewise, Our Lady of Mount Carmel willed to begin the Work on 
the day of her Feast, July 16, through M. Dupont, by means of the 
Forty-day s’ Prayer in 1843, to sanction it by Pius IX in 1847, and to 
definitely cause its adoption by her holy Order of Carmel in 1876. 
Beautiful and consoling coincidences, Mary and the Church ! 


308 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


6 


“ O powerful hands of Mary ! ye have done all, 
men have been only the instruments. Receive my 
boundless thanks ! Be ye forever blessed, at all 
times and in all places ! 

“ But let us admire another manifestation of Di¬ 
vine Providence, and of Mary’s protection. This 
Work of the Reparation for Blasphemy and for the 
Violation of Sunday, is brought by the Right 
Reverend Bishop of Langres to the feet of the 
Sovereign Pontiff, in order to obtain a Brief, enrich¬ 
ing it with the Indulgences and blessings of the 
Holy Church. The Holy Father gives this Brief 
under date of July 27, 1847 ; on the 30th, His 
Holiness gives a second, erecting it into an Arch- 
confraternity. I gaze with admiration at the Holy 
Church bringing forth this Work, during those three 
days of painful memories, f 

“ I behold the mercy of God 1 superabounding ’ 
where sin hath abounded. For this, O my God ! 
may est Thou be ever blessed ! Neither chance nor 
accident have here had any part. Thy Providence 
has guided and directed all for the glory of Thy 
Holy Name, and the salvation of France. Protect 
then this Work which is Thy masterpiece, defend 
it against its enemies, and propagate it in this kingdom 
which is consecrated to the glorious Virgin Mary.” 

We have refrained from abridging the simple, 
pious effusions of our good Sister concerning 
an event which so happily filled up the mea¬ 
sure of her wishes. It now remains for us to give 
the details of some of the principal circumstances. 


t Allusion to tlie Three Days’ Battle in the streets of Pans. 


CHAPTER XVIII. 


THE ARCH-CONFRATERNITY. 

“Sit Nomen Domini benedictum / Blessed be the Name of the 
Lord ! ” {Arch-Confraternity of the Reparation.) 

The Confraternity of the Reparation sprang into 
existence, as it were, by the sole power of God, with¬ 
out the interposition of human aid. We will trace 
the event as it took place, guided by notes from 
the Annals of the Carmelite convent, and also 
drawing somewhat upon M. Dupont’s account. 

One of the pamphlets entitled An Abridgment of 
Facts , had, through the agency of a friend, fallen 
into the hands of a fervent Christian gentleman of 
Rouen, M. Le Brument-Jeulin, a person slightly 
acquainted with M. Dupont, but much resembling 
him in his zeal for virtue and good works. (This 
friend was the Rev. Father Viellecazes, formerly 
Director of the Grand-Seminary of Tours, and, at 
this time, Superior of the Grand-Seminary and of 
the Carmelite Nuns of Rouen.) 

Taking advantage of a business trip to Paris, M. 
Le Brument purposely went to Tours to make some 
inquiries concerning the matter, and there being 
fully convinced of the truth and importance of the 
facts related, he did not hesitate to constitute himself 

309 


310 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


the courier, and, as it were, the travelling agent of 
the projected Work, resolving to forward it most' 
zealously whenever Providence furnished him an 
occasion of so doing. Nor was this long wanting. 
God’s great design was on the eve of execution. 

Passing through Paris on his return to Rouen, M. 
Le Brument meets on the stairs of the Hotel, the 
Reverend Abbé Favrel, Vicar-General of Langres, 
with whom he had previously had some correspon¬ 
dence, and who informs him that his (the Abbé 
Favrel’s) Bishop, Mgr. Parisis, is there, stopping at 
the Hotel, at the same time inviting him to be 
introduced to the illustrious Prelate, which intro¬ 
duction took place that day. During the conver¬ 
sation, the pious layman spoke of his recent journey 
in Touraine, related what he had learned from M. 
Dupont, and urged the necessity of the Work of 
Reparation. 

The Bishop of Langres appeared greatly moved. 
He acknowledged that for some time past he had 
been deeply impressed with the same idea, and had 
desired to establish in his diocese just such a Confra¬ 
ternity. He wrote immediately to the Archbishop 
of Tours, who, as a precautionary measure on account 
of the revelations made to the Carmelite nun, and 
upon which he did not judge opportune to pronounce 
a decision, left the initiative of the Work to Mgr. 
Parisis, being all the more willing to do this, as 
Langres was his (Mgr. Morlot’s) birth-place. Then, 
Mgr. Parisis, by an Episcopal Decree of the 28th of 
June, 1847, Vigil of the Feast of the holy Apostles 
Saints Peter and Paul, established the Confraternity 
of the Reparation for Blasphemy, and for the Prof- 


THE ARCH—CONFRATERNITY. 


311 


anation of Sunday, in a parochial church at Saint- 
Dizier, dedicated to St. Martin. 

He also sent the Reverend Abbé Marché, pastor 
of the aforesaid church to Rome, to solicit, in behalf 
of the Association, the title of Arch-Confraternity, 
together with some Indulgences. His Holiness, Pius 
IX, then two years upon the Papal throne, greeted 
this petition with the most ardent enthusiasm, and 
it was on this occasion, he expressed himself in these 
memorable and often quoted words : “ Reparation is 
a Work destined to save society.” 

He granted the requested Indulgences, and by a 
Brief of July 30, 1847, raised the Association of 
Reparation established at Saint-Dizier to the dignity 
of an Arch-Confraternity, requesting that his name 
be the first inscribed upon the register of the Asso¬ 
ciation, signal and unique privilege, which was to 
be the seed of wonderful benedictions. 

And thus were our dear Sister’s desires realized, 
conformably to the inspiration she had received 
from Heaven. For, before going to Rome, the 
pastor of Saint-Dizier, by order of the Right Rev¬ 
erend Bishop of Langres, had been in communica¬ 
tion with Carmel of Tours, concerning the framing 
of the rules of the Confraternity as promulgated by 
the Episcopal Ordinance, these having been the sub¬ 
ject of long negotiations and minute discussion, 
until both parties had come to a definite agreement 
upon essentials at least, and the principal object of 
the Reparation, if not upon all the secondary details. 
The aforesaid Association was consecrated to the 
Adorable Trinity, and to the Holy Name of Jesus, 
and placed under the patronage of St. Michael, St. 


312 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


Louis, and St. Martin, Protectors of France. Its 
badge was a cross with these words engraved on one 
side: Sit Nomen Domini benedictum y and on the 
other, Vade Retro Satana ; also, a medal having on 
one side, the radiant triangle, symbol of the Ador¬ 
able Trinity, and on the other, the Holy Face of 
Jesus. The words engraved on the Cross, were to 
be recited by the Associates each time they would 
hear blasphemy, or see the Sunday and Holy days of 
obligation profaned. 

Erected into an Arch-Confraternity, it had the 
right to aggregate to itself other Associations 
throughout the Catholic world, established for the 
same end, and willing to adopt the same rules. An 
express clause conferred upon Bishops the faculty 
of modifying these rules to suit their respective 
dioceses, provided the fundamental articles were 
not changed. Hence, we perceive that the end of 
Marie de Saint-Pierre’s urgent solicitations was, 
in reality, attained. She regretted, however, that 
the Association had not been established at Tours, 
—that the second parish of a small town in a 
distant diocese, should have had the glorious priv¬ 
ilege of being the centre of a Work destined to 
extend over the whole of France. Then as now, it 
was furthermore regretted, that there was no mention 
in the Episcopal Ordinance of the especial devotion to 
the Sorrowful Face of Our Lord Jesus Christ, 
which had been indicated to the Sister, as the sensi¬ 
ble sign of the Work of the Reparation. Doubtless, 
this must be ascribed to ignorance at Langres, of 
the fact of the especial revelations on this subject to 
the humble daughter of Carmel, and also perhaps, 


THE ARCH-CONFRATERNITY. 


313 


to the difficulty foreseen of obtaining the approba¬ 
tion of the Holy See, in thus appearing to take 
action upon revelations not yet sanctioned by any 
ecclesiastical judgment. Hence, the authorities con¬ 
tented themselves with engraving on the reverse of 
the cross of the Confraternity, the Holy Face of the 
“Ecee Homo,” and inserting in the Manual, the 
litany of the Holy Face composed by Sister Saint- 
Pierre. Evidently, according to the revelations 
made to the Carmelite of Tours, there was yet much, 
to be done. However, we must acknowledge, that 
the devotion to our Lord’s Holy Face at this period, 
as compared with the present, was but little known. 
Sister Saint-Pierre expressed great satisfaction at 
the realization of her long-deferred and ardent 
desires, and it was likewise a source of joy to M. 
Dupont, who, for so many years, had labored most 
zealously for the Reparation of blasphemy, and in 
extending the honor and glory of God’s Holy 
Name. 

The Confraternity of the Reparation was so espe¬ 
cially adapted to the needs of our times, and there¬ 
fore so unmistakably God’s own work, that from 
the very commencement it spread like fire among 
forest reeds. The idea of atoning for blasphemy 
and the profanation of the Lord’s Day, until then 
hidden in the depths of a few pious souls, became 
immediately the object of universal interest, thou¬ 
sands of parishes and individuals from all parts of 
the world, hastening to send their names to be in¬ 
scribed upon its register. Hence, we may truly 
say, that the celestial communications imparted to 
the humble Carmelite, and through her, to the 
27 


314 LIFE OF SISTER ‘SAINT-PIERRE. 

Church, was as the fountain source of all the Repa¬ 
rative Works of our day.* 

One of these Works is especially worthy of men¬ 
tion, because it embraces both the spirit of the Repa¬ 
ration and the cultus of the Holy Face. We refer 
to the Congregation of Reparation and Perpetual 
Adoration, founded at Paris by Mlle. Dubouché, in 
religion, Sister Marie Teresa. 

This pious lady, endowed with many noble quali¬ 
ties and heroic virtues, was a distinguished artist and 
portrait painter. Having obtained, through Mother 
Isabelle of St. Paul, Prioress of the Carmelites of 
the Rue d’Enfer, one of the printed pamphlets, 
u An Abridgment of Facts ,” she was filled with ad¬ 
miration for the contents, especially the beautiful 
litany of the Holy Face, which she immediately 
began to recite with great devotion. “ The follow¬ 
ing night,” says M. Dupont, “ our Lord appeared to 
her with the dolorous Face of His Divine Passion. 
Next morning, which was Friday, Mlle. Dubouché, 
under the inspiration of emotions ineffable, began, 
as a duty, to reproduce upon canvas the bleeding 
Face of the Saviour, such as she had beheld in her 
vision. She had been inspired to occupy herself at 
this picture only on Fridays, and then in a kneeling 
posture. Four Fridays were necessary to complete 
the task, at the end of which time, there appeared a 
picture which the unassisted human mind could 
never have conceived ; it was surely of miraculous 
origin ! Mlle. Dubouché, bearing her precious bur¬ 
den, scarcely finished, arrives at Tours and presents 


Life of M. Dupont, t. I., p. 150. 


THE ARCH—CONFRATERNITY. 


315 


herself unexpectedly at the Carmelite convent, where 
she finds hearts so much the more capable of appre¬ 
ciating her work, by reason of our Lord’s words to 
Sister Saint-Pierre : i I will give you My Face, and 
when you present it to My Father My Mouth shall 
be opened to plead your cause.’ * 

The Mother Prioress received her in the parlor. 
Assisted by her secretary, Sister Marie Teresa of 
St. Joseph, and Sister Saint-Pierre, who was, at that 
time, portress, she opened the box containing the 
picture, Mlle. Dubouché, meanwhile, standing before 
the grating. The painting was set in a black frame 
having a gilded star at each angle. Called upon 
by the artist to know if this representation corres¬ 
ponded with what she had seen, Sister Saint-Pierre 
humbly replied that our Lord’s Face had never been 
manifested to her in a sensible manner, but that this 
picture fully expressed the idea she had formed, 
in her own mind, of the Suffering Countenance 
of our Divine Master. 

For the benefit of the Community, the picture 
was exposed on the altar of the Novitiate, and whilst 
they were contemplating it with devotion, Sister 
Saint-Pierre approached, and her face was suddenly 
overspread with such an expression of sorrow and 
love, as deeply impressed several of the nuns who 
witnessed it. 

M. Dupont wishing to see this marvellous picture, 
the pious artist had it brought to his house, pre- 

* Life of M. Dupont, t. I., p. 282. 

A sister of the translator who saw this picture at the house of 
M. Dupont, says that the very sight of it would move one to 
perfect contrition. 


316 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


sented it to him herself, and willingly granted per¬ 
mission to have it copied. The fervent layman im¬ 
mediately profited by the favor, and gave the hastily 
made, but first true copy, to the Carmelite monas¬ 
tery, where it is religiously preserved in the chapter- 
room, above the spot where rest the remains of Sis¬ 
ter Saint-Pierre. Mlle. Dubouché herself made 
several copies, one of which is to be found at Tours, 
in the chapel of St. Ursula. 

Naturally, this circumstance was the foundation 
of a holy friendship between herself and Carmel 
of Tours, and she was not forgotten when the Com¬ 
munity sent out circulars announcing Sister Saint- 
Pierre’s death. At the time of receiving this 
intelligence Mlle. Dubouché was confined to her 
bed, seriously ill. Immediately, the thought occurred 
to her to make a Novena in union with the dear 
deceased Sister, promising a pilgrimage of thanks¬ 
giving to her tomb, were her health thus restored. 
And, behold ! ten days later she came, full of joy, to 
fulfil her vow! “We heard her,” continues M. 
Dupont, “ exclaiming enthusiastically on her return 
from the cemetery, ‘ I was ill, given up by the 
physicians, but behold ! what the holy and beloved 
confidante of Jesus can do! I am entirely cured ; the 
journey has not in the least fatigued me.’” 

On returning to Paris, Mlle. Dubouché put into 
execution her Heaven-inspired project. On the 
6th of August, just a month after Sister Saint- 
Pierre’s death, she left the world, and making an 
appeal to a few chosen souls she founded the 
“Congregation of the Reparation with Perpetual 
Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.” At the end 


THE ARCH-CONFRATERNITY. 


317 


of three months, the new Community though not 
numerous, could once or twice a week, make the 
Nocturnal Adoration in the chapel of the Carmel¬ 
ites, in the Rue d’ Enfer, Paris. It was on one of 
these occasions, that the celebrated Hermann, re¬ 
cently converted from Judaism, (known later as 
Reverend Father Marie Augustin), conceived the 
idea of also calling on men to render homage to our 
Lord at night in the Sacrament of His Love. One 
afternoon in November, the pious neophyte who 
took delight in visiting Sanctuaries where the 
Blessed Sacrament was exposed for adoration, hav¬ 
ing entered the chapel of the Carmelite monastery, 
was so wrapt in his devotions adoring our Lord 
exposed in the Ostensorium, that he was unmind¬ 
ful of the passing hours, and the approach of night. 
A turn-Sister of the convent at length gives the 
signal to leave ; a second notice becomes necessary. 
At this he says to her, “ I will retire at the same 
time as those persons at the end of the chapel.” 
“ But they remain here all night,” replies the Sister. 
This answer was more than sufficient to implant a 
precious germ in this heart so truly disposed to 
cherish it. He who is soon to be called the “ Angel 
of the Tabernacle,” leaves the holy chapel, hastens 
to Mgr. de la Bouillerie, then Vicar-General, and 
says to him, “ I have just now been made leave a 
chapel where women are all night in adoration 
before the Blessed Sacrament ! ” . . . Mgr. de la 
Bouillerie, who had contributed to the foundation 
of the Community of the Reparation by Mile. 
Dubouche replied: “Well! find the men, and 
we will authorize you to imitate these pious 
27* 


318 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


women whose lot you so envy at the feet of our 
Lord.” 

The very next day, the holy Angels assisting, 
Hermann found several persons whose ardent de¬ 
sires on this point were an echo of his own. Soon 
he was able to form into a band about twenty will¬ 
ing adorers, and before the end of the year, the first 
society of the Nocturnal Adoration for men was 
organized at Notre-Dame des Victoires, Paris.* 

The first Reunion of Adoration took place on the 
night of December 6, 1848, just as the news was 
suddenly received at Paris that Pius IX had left 
Rome, to escape the Revolution which had made 
France a Republic, and shaken all the thrones of 
Europe. 

Thus, the Work of the Nocturnal Adoration in 
France by men, from its inauguration and initiative 
act, manifested to the world the two principal inten¬ 
tions underlying all its homages and prayers—the 
expiation of the outrages and indignities offered our 
Lord, and the salvation of France by the triumph of 
the Church. 

We have also seen how the Work of the Repara¬ 
tion by the Adoration of the Blessed Eucharist, had, 
whilst yet in its cradle, in a congregation of women 
newly founded, given rise to the aforesaid Nocturnal 
Adoration by men. 

. It is clearly evident that both are a direct sequel 
to the communications made to Sister Saint-Pierre ; 
and one could not have entered more fully into the 
Divine Master’s intentions, as revealed to His ser- 

* M. Dupont’s account. See his Life , 1.1., p. 284. 


THE ARCH-CONFRATERNITY. 319 

vant, than by thus uniting, as a means of Reparation, 
the Perpetual Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, 
and the devotion to the Holy Face. 

Our readers will remember that our Divine Lord, 
(in a communication of February 27, 1844,) having 
constituted the little Carmelite of Tours His am¬ 
bassadress from France, had charged her in virtue 
of that high office, to be continually at His feet in 
the Most Blessed Sacrament (at least, in spirit), pray¬ 
ing for the Eldest Daughter of the Church, and for 
the accomplishment of the Work of the Reparation. 

Since that day, she had felt herself called by this 
Divine Master to adore Him in the Most Blessed 
Sacrament, and never to lose sight of His Eucha¬ 
ristic Presence. Later, in the beginning of the year 
1847, when the connection existing between the 
Divine Majesty blasphemed, and the Holy Face of 
Jesus wounded, defiled and .disfigured, had been 
manifested to her in the striking manner we have 
already mentioned in the foregoing chapters, our 
Lord made her hear His plaintive sighs, upon man’s 
coldness and neglect of His boundless love in the 
Most Blessed Sacrament of the Altar, and then, as 
she says, “ He happily bound at His feet the heart 
and mind of His servant, that she might keep Him 
company in His loneliness, adoring His most Holy 
Face hidden beneath the Eucharistic Veil.” 

In founding her Congregation of the Reparation 
with Perpetual Adoration of the Most Blessed Sac¬ 
rament, Mlle. Dubouché thus entered into the designs 
of God, previously communicated to Sister Saint- 
Pierre. Therefore, Reverend Mother Isabelle of 
St. Paul, who rejoiced at the success of a Work 


320 LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 

which she had assisted in establishing, did not hesi¬ 
tate to refer, after God, all the honor to the holy 
Carmelite of Tours, and she thus expresses herself 
in writing to Mlle. Dubouché : “ My Sister Saint- 
Pierre is certainly the principal Foundress of the 
Work, and I firmly believe, that from Heaven, she 
aids us with her powerful protection, and inspires 
with fervor those who are the foundation stones of 
this spiritual edifice.” 

On his part, M. Dupont, perfectly initiated into 
the origin of all the various Reparative Works of 
our day, with which same he zealously and habitu¬ 
ally occupied himself, did not hesitate to say, i that 
Mlle. Dubouché was inspired with the project of 
founding her Congregation of the Reparation at the 
tomb of Sister Saint-Pierre, when she made her pil¬ 
grimage of thanksgiving, after recovering her health 
through the intercession of our holy Carmelite/ 

Immediately, on learning of the establishment of 
the Nocturnal Adoration at Paris for men, M. Du¬ 
pont left nothing undone until he had seen the 
establishment of the same at Tours, (February, 
1849); as though this great servant of God had 
accepted as his mission, the task of realizing in all 
things, in a public and ostensible manner, our Lord’s 
most secret designs, communicated to the humble 
Virgin of Carmel ! * 


*Life of M. Dupont, 1.1., p. 286. 


CHAPTER XIX. 


THE DIVINE MATERNITY 

“ Mother of God, remember thou «art my Mother, and that I am 
the little sister of the Holy Infant Jesus.” (The Sister’s 
Words.) 

The Work of the Reparation is canonically insti¬ 
tuted, and the ardent longings of Marie de Saint- 
Pierre are at last realized, so far, at least, as regards 
essentials. Our Lord is now about to open before her 
new spheres of contemplation, and grant her commu¬ 
nications of so extraordinary and mysterious a char¬ 
acter, that, before acquainting our readers with them, 
we deem it necessary to explain their nature and 
importance. They form, in the history of our dear 
Sister, a series of especial revelations of the highest 
interest, and which cannot be detached from the pre¬ 
ceding, more particularly those directly connected 
with the Reparation, without veiling the most lumi¬ 
nous and consoling side of this great Work. The 
Lord granted this favor to the daughter of Carmel 
for two reasons, which are clearly indicated in the 
very account she gives of them. 

One of these, entirely personal, was to recompense 
her, even on earth, by very sweet spiritual joys for 
the sacrifices she had undergone in the fulfilment of 

321 


322 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


her mission ; for thus does the Divine Master often 
act towards souls who have served Him with fidelity. 

The other was more general ; relating to the Bep- 
aration, it was to prefigure the graces of mercy and 
salvation) which would result from the establishment 
of the Work. For this effusion of promised graces, 
the world was to be indebted to the merits and inter¬ 
cession of the most Blessed Virgin ; and the August 
Mother of Jesus, who is, at the same time, the 
Mother of all Christians, gave to the pious servant 
of her Son, Marie de Saint-Pierre, a foretaste of 
them, by causing her to participate in a spiritual and 
celestial manner, in the virginal nourishment He had 
imbibed from her chaste bosom in His Infancy. A 
favor so astonishing is not wholly exceptional nor 
without precedent in the lives of the Saints. No 
one is ignorant of the incident related of St. Bernard, 
Abbot of Clair vaux. In a celebrated vision, the 
Queen of Heaven, to recompense him for the admir¬ 
able pages he had just written in her honor, caused 
a little stream of milk to flow upon his lips. This 
prodigy has often been related, and even been repre¬ 
sented upon canvas.* 

According to the learned Baronius, St. Fulbert, 
Bishop of Chartres, another devoted servant of Mary, 
was, in 1028, favored with a similar privilege, 
during an illness which had brought him to the last 
extremity. In virtue of the sacred milk the Blessed 
Virgin imparted .to him, he instantaneously recov- 


* We find, according to the Rev. Abbé Bourassé, some very 
curious details of this event in the work of the Rev. Father 
Hipp. Marraci, Fundatores Mariant (Hist, de la Vierge Marie, 
by M. Bourassé, p. 364.) 


THE DIVINE MATERNITY. 


323 


ered his health, and at the same time became endowed 
with the gift of prophecy. 

Moreover, no one disputes the principles upon 
which these prodigies rest ; they are perfectly con¬ 
formable to the teachings of Faith and the doctrine 
of the Church. The Divine Maternity is a Catholic 
dogma, essentially linked to the Incarnation of the 
Word ; in all ages, has it inspired ascetic writers, and 
even the Holy Fathers themselves, with great and 
entrancing considerations upon the Mystery of the 
Holy Infancy of Jesus, and His infantine relations 
with His most Blessed Mother. 

Let us read, for example, the writings of St. 
Athanasius, St. Augustine, St. Bernard, St. Vincent 
Ferrier; these illustrious Doctors all proclaim the 
Maternity of Mary in terms of the highest admira¬ 
tion, with singular expressions of faith and piety, 
and in a sense analogous to that in which they 
absorbed the mind and heart of Sister Saint-Pierre. 
It is also important not to misunderstand the naturë 
and mode of the Divine operation, in the favor 
granted the daughter of Carmel. 

We repeat what we have already said on this 
point, that Sister Saint-Pierre never received any 
exterior or sensible manifestations* To explain her¬ 
self and give an intelligible account of these matters 
to her Mother Prioress, she was obliged, as we also 
shall be, to make use of expressions and images 
appealing to the senses ; but, in reality, everything 
took place in a purely intellectual manner* We 
know that mystic theologians distinguish three kinds 
of Divine communications; those which strike the 
physical senses, such as visions and other exterior 


324 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


apparitions under sensible and palpable forms ; those 
which take place in the imagination, through the 
aid of interior and invisible representations and 
images; finally, those which appeal solely to the 
understanding, the superior part of the soul, without 
the interposition of images, either visible or invis¬ 
ible. Now, it was with these last mentioned super¬ 
natural gifts, pronounced by masters of the spiritual 
life the most elevated and perfect, that Marie de 
Saint-Pierre was favored ; consequently, all that she 
describes in so delicate and ingenuous a manner, she 
did not see with the eyes of the body, or hear with 
her ears, or touch or taste, even through the imagi¬ 
nation. “ Our Lord has made me understand/’— 
such is the term she habitually uses ; she saw, heard, 
felt, and tasted, but in the manner of pure spirits, 
by an intellectual and angelic mode, satisfactorily 
explained by Theology, but only clearly understood 
by chosen souls who have had similar experience. 

We here quote the testimony of St. Teresa, no 
insignificant authority in such matters : “ I learnt 
. . . that this vision ” (the intellectual) “ was of 
the highest order, and one with which Satan can 
least interfere. ... For if I say that I see Him 
neither with the eyes of the body, nor with those 
of the soul,—because it was not an imaginary vision, 
—how is it that I can understand and maintain that 
He stands beside me, and be more certain of it than 
if I saw Him ? . . . He renders Himself present 
to the soul by a certain knowledge of Himself which 
is more clear than the sun. I do not mean that we 
now see either a sun or any brightness, only that 
there is a light not seen, which illumines the under- 


THE DIVINE MATERNITY. 


325 


standing so that the soul may have the fruition 
of so great a good. ... So clear a knowledge is 
impressed on the soul that all doubt seems impos¬ 
sible, though He is not seen. . . . Our Lord wills 
this knowledge to be so graven on the understanding, 
that we can no more question His presence than we 
can question that which we see with our eyes ; not 
even so much ; for very often there arises a suspicion 
that we have imagined things we think we see ; but 
here, though there may be a suspicion in the first 
instant, there remains a certainty so great, that the 
doubt has no force whatever. So also is it when 
God teaches the soul in another way, and speaks to 
it without speaking, in the way I have described. 

“ There is so much of Heaven in this language, 
that it cannot well be understood on earth, though 
we may desire ever so much to explain it, if our 
Lord will not teach it experimentally. Our Lord 
impresses in the innermost soul that which He wills 
that soul to understand ; and He manifests it there 
without images or formal words, after the manner 
of the vision I am speaking of. . . . In the locu¬ 
tions of which I spoke before, God makes the 
understanding attentive, though it may be painful 
to understand what is said ; then the soul seems to 
have other ears wherewith to hear ; and he forces it 
to listen, and will not let it be distracted. The 
soul is like a person whose hearing is good, and who 
is not suffered to stop his ears, while people stand¬ 
ing close beside him speak to him with a loud voice. 
He may be unwilling to hear, yet hear he must. . . . 
It is our Lord’s will in every way that the soul 
should have some knowledge of what passes in 
28 


326 


. LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


Heaven ; and I think that, as the blessed there 
without speech understand one another—I never 
knew this for certain till our Lord of His goodness 
made me see it ; He showed it to me in a trance— 
so is it here : God and the soul understand one 
another, merely because His Majesty so wills it, 
without the help of other means, to express the love 
there is between them both. In the same way on 
earth, two persons of sound sense, if they love each 
other much, can even, without any signs, under¬ 
stand one another only by their looks. It must be 
so here, though we do not see how, as these two 
lovers earnestly regard each the other. . . . Consider 
well this way in which God works, in order that 
the soul may understand what He means — His 
great truths and mysteries. . . . All that is done 
is apparently the work of our Lord. It is as if 
food had been received into the stomach which had 
not first been eaten, and without our knowing how 
it entered; but we'do know well that it is there, 
though we know not its nature, nor who it was that 
placed it there. In this vision, I know who placed 
it ; but I do not know how He did it. I neither 
saw it nor felt it ; I never had any inclination to 
desire it, and I never knew before that such a thing 
was possible.” * 

It is thus the illustrious Keformatrix of Carmel 
expresses herself ; and what she felt, what she so 
admirably explained, was also experienced by one of 
her worthy daughters, the Carmelite of Tours. 

• 

*Life of St. Teresa , written by herself. Literal extracts from 
translation, by David Lewis, Chap. XXVII. 


THE DIVINE MATERNITY. 


327 


Whilst reading the following, we request our 
readers not to lose sight of these preliminary reflec¬ 
tions, so that instead of being scandalized or sur¬ 
prised, they may the rather be disposed to rejoice, and 
to find edification in contemplating such rare favors, 
granted a soul in a recompense for its fidelity and 
general sacrifices. 

Moreover, let us not forget that our cherished 
Sister had, for a long time, been prepared for these 
heavenly gifts, not only by a practical and tender 
filial devotion to the most Blessed Virgin, but also, 
by that especial attraction for the Holy Infancy of 
the Incarnate Word, so marked since her entrance 
into the cloister. This sweet Mystery was, in reality, 
the principle of her rapid progress in religious per¬ 
fection, and the primary source of these supernatural 
lights by which she was illuminated. 

As heretofore in our pages, we shall, as far as 
possible, allow her to relate in her own simple, 
ingenuous manner, the account of the marvellous 
graces with which she was favored. 

Her letters upon the holy Maternity of Mary she 
introduces by the following preface : 

“A woman in the Gospel, speaking to our Divine 
Saviour, exclaimed, ‘Blessed is the womb that bore 
Thee , and blessed are the paps that gave Thee such ! ’ 
This woman, full of faiih and piety, say the Holy 
Fathers, represented the Church ; she, at that 
moment, recognized and openly confessed the Di¬ 
vinity and Humanity in Jesus Christ; she adored 
in Him a Man-God ! 

“ This Mystery of an Infant God, nourished with 
the sacred milk of the Virgin Mary, His most Holy 


328 LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 

Mother is a hidden, unknown Mystery, which the 
Divine Child manifests to whomsoever He pleases, 
for His greater glory and their profit. 

“ He has deigned, notwithstanding my unworthi¬ 
ness, to reveal it to me during the past five months, 
giving me these ineffable lights and consolations to 
rejoice and rest my soul, after my slight labors, and 
the bitterness with which I was filled whilst engaged 
in glorifying His Name. Yes, most amiable Infant 
Jesus, just as Thy Work of the Keparation is on 
the eve of being established, Thou hast given my 
soul a great banquet, whereat it has partaken of 
delicious viands ! 

“ My sins have merited that I should feel only 
the rigor of Thy Justice ; but, Thy Mercy is above 
all Thy works, and the admirable familiarities Thou 
dost graciously manifest towards souls surpasses 
human understanding.” 

In designating this Mystery as “ hidden and un¬ 
known,” the Sister does not mean that it had never 
been revealed to any one save herself ; but, that it 
contains reserved lights and treasures, for the most 
part, beyond the knowledge and reach of the ma¬ 
jority of souls; hence, in the eyes of the world, will 
it always be a “ hidden Mystery.” In a first ac¬ 
count given to the Mother Prioress, (June 24, 
1847), the servant of God thus enters upon this 
subject. . . 

“ It is with the greatest confusion, I give to you 
an account of the favors, which of late, I receive 
from the Divine Jesus and His Holy Mother. 
Nevertheless, I feel constrained to do so. I hesi¬ 
tate indeed to perform this duty, for I would 


THE DIVINE MATERNITY. 


329 


far prefer writing the table of my sins. How¬ 
ever, cooperating with the Holy AYill of the 
Infant Jesus, Who wishes to imprint His simplicity 
upon me, I will tell you, with all candor, as nearly 
as I can, what has passed in my soul. 

“A few days ago, after Holy Communion, the Infant 
Jesus strongly attracted me to consider the honor 
and homage of perfect praise He rendered to His 
celestial Father, during the time He was nourished 
by the virginal milk of His most Holy Mother, and 
He has made me understand, that it is His Will I 
should adore Him in this humble state, in union 
with the holy Angels, that thus His Mercy may fill 
me with innocence, purity, simplicity, and that I 
may gather the precious graces flowing from the 
ineffable Mystery of a Child-God. Then, this 
Divine Saviour transported my soul to a sublime 
state; and, in great elevation of spirit, I contem¬ 
plated this prodigy of love and humility : Him 
Who is eternally begotten in the Bosom of the 
Father, in the splendors of His £lory, nourished 
upon the milk of His august Mother ! The Holy 
Ghost has made me enter into the depths of this 
Mystery, which heretofore was unknown to me. O 
Angelic Spirits ! ye who are occupied in adoring Him, 
toll me, in truth, which to you is the more entranc¬ 
ing sight, to see a Virgin holding her Creator, and 
her God in her arms, and nourishing Him with her 
virginal milk, or to behold God become a Babe, the 
Word Divine reduced to silence, the Almighty 
clothed in swaddling clothes, upon the bosom of His 
Virgin Mother? Ah! I believe I hear you answer, 
that the humiliations of the Child-God in this pro- 
28 * 


330 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


found Mystery form the grandeur and glory of 
Mary, whose two august privileges are, to be at the 
same time, the Mother and Nurse of a Man-God. 

“ To-day, being the glad festival of the birth of 
the holy Precursor, St. John the Baptist, dear 
friend of the Incarnate Word, the Infant Jesus had 
prepared a feast for my soul. 

“ I make it known with the greatest confusion, 
for such a favor was due only to a St. Bernard, and 
not to a miserable sinner like myself ; however, I 
feel constrained, in the simplicity of my soul, to 
acquaint you with it, as well as I can. It was no 
imagination, but a veritable grace which I cannot 
intelligibly express, knowing of no words ade¬ 
quate to my purpose. Ah ! if it were but given 
to me to impart to others a knowledge of the lights 
I have received! . . . What a treasure I have 
found !... The Infant Jesus, (if I may thus 
express myself), has made of the virtues of His 
Holy Infancy, a bouquet with which He has 
adorned the bd&om of His Mother,—virtues of 
meekness, humility, innocence, purity and sim¬ 
plicity, which His brethren, begotten by Mary at 
the foot of the Cross, must come to seek from their 
adoptive Mother. Oh ! I perceive a great Mystery ! 
Yes, Mary is Nurse to a God! she is also Nurse of 
the Man ! What great things my mind conceived 
of Mary’s grandeur, during this lofty contemplation 
which has ravished my soul ! I had need of the 
entire recreation hour to be restored to my usual 
frame of mind. 

“ This is an abstract of the operations of the Divine 
Saviour in an unworthy sinner. He wishes to adorn 


THE DIVINE MATERNITY. 


331 


me with the virtues of His Holy Infancy, ere I 
appear at the tribunal of God, for I must become a 
little child to enter the kingdom of Heaven ; hence, 
the short time remaining to me on earth must be 
spent in honoring and imitating His Infancy, whence 
my soul may receive the Divine impress. 

“ Such, my Reverend Mother, are the dispositions 
of my soul ; it is, as you see, intimately united to 
the Infant God and His Virgin Mother, from which 
union I am inundated with graces. Yet, I do not 
forget the Work of the Reparation, for it is from the 
mouth of the Child-Word at the breast, that God 
verily received perfect praises to the glory of His 
Name, and it is in this state of weakness and humil¬ 
iation, I offer Him to the Eternal Father for the 
same holy intention.” 

Let us here notice the connection existing in Sister 
Saint-Pierre’s mind, between the reparation of out¬ 
rages offered the Divine Name by blasphemers, and 
the Mystery of the Child-Word. 

This comparison seems to have been suggested to 
her by a passage of one of the Psalms, wherein the 
Prophet King says : “ Out of the mouth of infants 
and sucklings Thou hast perfected praise, because 
of Thy enemies, that Thou mayst destroy the enemy 
and the avenger.” 

The first time the holy Carmelite was led by our 
Lord to contemplate His Divine Infancy under this 
mysterious aspect, she experienced great surprise, and 
wished to know whether any of the Saints had 
treated of the subject in their writings. 

“ In regard to these interior operations,” says she, 
“ I had already consulted two ecclesiastics eminent 


332 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


for their learning and piety. They had answered 
me ‘that the spirit of God worked in my soul, and 
that it was necessary for me to follow the attraction 
of grace, corresponding to it with fidelity, as God 
would thus derive glory therefrom,—and that I 
must despise the demon and the great terror with 
which he would endeavor to fill my soul, to turn me 
from a way so extraordinary.’ I submitted to their 
wise counsels, which corresponded to those of my 
Superiors ; nevertheless, I desired to know the senti¬ 
ments of the Church on this point. 

“ For, although assured that there was no danger 
whatever to my soul, and that I must peacefully con¬ 
tinue my exercises, this did not satisfy me. I wished 
to find something in the lives or doctrines of the 
Saints bearing upon the communications I had re¬ 
ceived, which might serve me as a guide; but I 
was at a loss where to seek this knowledge ; so I had 
recourse to Him who is All-powerful, and fervently 
supplicated Him to assist my efforts. Nor was my 
prayer in vain, for soon I felt strongly urged to ask 
our Reverend Mother for a certain book, a work of 
Father d’ Argentan. She granted my request; and 
what was my surprise, and thankfulness to God to 
find on opening it, a Conference upon the Divine 
Maternity of the Blessed Virgin, Nurse of the In¬ 
carnate Word ! My admiration increased, when on 
reading it, I learned the high esteem in which the 
Fathers of the Church held this great privilege of 
Mary. All that I read was as the very echo of 
what had been imprinted in my soul, during the 
operations of the Holy Spirit in me relative to this 
Mystery. Oh ! with what respect and joy, I kissed 


THE DIVINE MATERNITY. 


333 


these sacrecl pages our Lord and His holy Mother 
had placed before my eyes as a heavenly beacon, to 
enlighten my soul and banish its disquietude ! 
Convinced now that the devotion was neither new 
nor illusory, since St. Augustine, St. Athanasius, 
and St. Bernard spoke of it with so much unction 
and fervor, I am perfectly at peace, and have aban¬ 
doned myself into the hands of the Infant Jesus, 
that His adorable Will may be accomplished in me.” 

In explanation of our cherished Sister’s transports 
just related, we will remark that the above men¬ 
tioned spiritual book enjoys, in fact, among compe¬ 
tent judges, a great and merited reputation, both as 
to its theological and ascetical character. 

Father d’ Argentan, of the Minor Capuchins, was 
a writer of the latter part of the seventeenth century. 
Apart from some very quaint expressions, and a 
certain eccentricity of oratorical figures peculiarly 
his own, his style is not unworthy of the great 
literary era in which he wrote. His Conferences 
upon the grandeurs of Jesus Christ and Mary are 
well known, and highly appreciated in the monas¬ 
teries of his illustrious Order, the members of it 
always having recourse to it, as a rich and inexhaust¬ 
ible mine of thought concerning the .Mysteries of 
Jesus Christ or the Blessed Virgin. Hence, the 
Carmelite of Tours had reason to lean upon the 
testimony of such an author. Nor should we be 
astonished that she even went further, that becom¬ 
ing thoroughly penetrated with the doctrine and the 
very phraseology of the book, she collected the 
most striking passages and inserted them in her own 
record, which fact she ingenuously mentions : 


334 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


“ These opinions of the Fathers have been so 
spiritually profitable to me, that I have thought it 
not inadvisable to reproduce them in this narration, 
for the enlightenment and instruction of such as 
may hereafter read it. I am writing in the spirit 
of obedience and charity, according to the super¬ 
natural lights our Lord gives me for this little work, 
consecrated to the Incarnation of the Word and the 
Divine Maternity. I shall speak in all simplicity, 
for our Lord has reduced my soul to the state of a 
little child, and has wrought in me wonders which 
surpass my understanding. ‘ Unless ye be converted 
and become like little children/ said He to His 
Apostles, ‘ye shall not enter into the kingdom of 
Heaven/ ” 

These supernatural manifestations began the day 
after the Feast of St. John the Baptist, (June 25). 

“Whilst adoring, after Holy Communion, the 
Infant Jesus in the Mystery of His Birth, of which 
I had made a memento that morning,” says the 
Sister, “I beheld the Blessed Virgin take Him in 
her arms, and present to Him her virginal breast ; 
and soon I found myself enclosed in the heart of 
the Holy Infant. He made me understand that I 
must keep myself there in silence, so as not to dis¬ 
turb Him by the acts I wished to make, and I 
obeyed His voice. 

“Very soon, turning her attention from her Divine 
Child to be occupied with me, (if I may thus express 
myself) the Blessed Virgin made known to me the 
designs of mercy her Beloved Son had upon my soul. 

“‘ My daughter/ said she, ‘ it is the Will of my 
Divine Son to contract with you a most holy and 


THE DIVINE MATERNITY. 


335 


intimate union. Acknowledge yourself very un¬ 
worthy of such a favor, for it is a marvel of His 
love ; He has consigned to me the charge of preparing 
you for it.’ ” 

This good Mother now told her to recall to mind 
her past sins, and whilst she (the Sister) was begging 
pardon of Jesus for them, her soul found itself, like 
a new-born child, at the most pure breast of the 
August Virgin, who made her understand that our 
Lord had given her to her (His Mother), to be nour¬ 
ished with the milk of her graces and virtues ; that 
this ineffable nourishment, which she must claim 
from her twice a day with infantine simplicity, 
would always be granted her, not in a sensible 
manner, however, but by such an influx of grace as 
would render her still more worthy of contracting a 
closer union with Jesus in His Infancy. 

“Then,” says the Sister, “the Blessed Virgin 
made me understand, that I was to apply myself in 
honoring her virginal bosom by practices of piety. 
I have obeyed her, for I received from the Holy 
Ghost the lights to compose a short exercise, upon 
the ineffable Mystery of a Child-God at the bosom 
of His Virgin Mother.” 

This “little Exercise” of the fervent Carmelite 
is composed of invocations, borrowed from the 
prayers and hymns of the Church, and more espe¬ 
cially of sweet colloquies, with which she was ap¬ 
parently inspired by the perusal of Father d’ Argen¬ 
tants work. Here are a few extracts from' it : 

“ Hail Mary, full of grace ! the Lord is with thee, 
blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the 
Fruit of thy Womb Jesus, Whom thou didst 


336 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


nourish during fifteen months with thy virginal 
milk. 

“ We give thee thanks, O Blessed Virgin Mary ! 
for the great love with which thou didst suckle the 
King of Heaven, and we bless thy maternal tender¬ 
ness. 

“ Eternal Father, we offer Thee, the Incarnate 
Word, a Babe at His Blessed Mother’s breast, ren¬ 
dering Thee by this lowly action, perfect praise for 
the honor and glory of Thy Holy Name. 

“ Oh ! most holy and sweet Mother of God, re¬ 
member thou art my Mother, and that I am the 
little sister of the Holy Infant Jesus ; feed me with 
thy milk. 

“ Thy Divine Son has left upon thy bosom the 
charming virtues of His Holy Infancy, and He 
sends me to gather this celestial dew, which will fill 
my soul with purity, innocence and simplicity. 

“Receive, O Virgin and Mother, these fifteen 
salutations, in memory of the fifteen months, dur¬ 
ing which thou didst nurse the Lamb of God, born 
in the stable of Bethlehem. 

“ O holy and August Mother ! what dost thou 
do? ‘ Ï give my milk to Him Who hath given me 
being. And what will become of this milk?’ ‘ It 

will become His Flesh and the Blood of His veins. 
This Flesh which I give Him will suffer the tor¬ 
ments of His Passion, and this Blood obtained from 
me, will be shed upon the Cross for the salvation of 
sinners ! 9 

“ O Angels of Heaven ! what think ye of this 
prodigy? It was once your mission to give man 
delicious food on earth, by showering manna from 


THE DIVINE MATERNITY. 


337 


Heaven, and this was truly a great miracle. But, 
behold now, with admiration inexpressible, the 
Virgin Mother your Queen, nourishing God Him¬ 
self, her Creator and yours Î 

“ O precious milk of Mary ! O Divine Blood of 
Jesus ! refresh earth that it may bring forth elect 
souls ! ” 

Soon after this, Sister Saint-Pierre was happy to 
find in the life of a Carmelite of Beaune, the 
Venerable Marguerite of the Blessed Sacrament, a 
devout nun devoted to the cultus of the Holy 
Infancy of Jesus, an account of a favor analogous 
to the one she had herself experienced. It is related 
of this admirable Sister, that Jesus made known to 
her, He had been nourished during fifteen months 
with the holy milk of His Mother, and that it was 
His Will she should adore Him in that Mystery of 
His life, for the same period of time. 

At the end of the fifteen months, the Holy Infant 
promised her, for all who should thus honor Him, 
great blessings,—that they would be especially as¬ 
sisted by His most Blessed Mother, and in remem¬ 
brance of the love with which she had nourished 
Him with her precious milk, He would grant all 
their petitions. 

“ After reading this incident,” says the Carmelite 
of Tours, “ I realized that it was no more difficult 
to the Holy Child Jesus at the present time, to thus 
render me a participant in these Mysteries of His 
Infancy, than it had been for Him to communicate 
them to one of my Sisters, two hundred years ago,— 
for He is Almighty; but, what astonishes me much, 
is, the fact, that whilst the first recipient was a very 
29 


338 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


holy soul, the second is only a miserable instrument, 
lacking both virtue and talent, a poor sinner worthy 
of hell; yet, whom the Infant Jesus wills sometimes 
to use, because, notwithstanding her extreme un¬ 
worthiness, she has consecrated herself entirely to 
Him for the accomplishment of His designs.” 

During the whole of July, Sister Saint-Pierre 
enjoyed the contemplation of the beautiful, humble 
Mystery, which had just been revealed to her. On 
the 1st of August, she wrote the following letter to 
the Reverend Mother Prioress 

. “ Notwithstanding the repugnance I feel to com¬ 

mit to paper an account of the present dispositions 
of my soul, I shall nevertheless do so, in order to 
practice the obedience and simplicity of the Holy 
Infant Jesus Whom I wish to imitate. As I feel 
sure you will throw this paper in the fire, I will 
speak to you with all the simplicity of a little child, 
in giving you an account of what has passed in my 
soul, since the Feast of St. John the Baptist to the 
present day. 

“My Reverend Mother, since that period, my 
soul has been absorbed in adoring the Incarnate 
Word at the breast of His Holy Mother. Oh! 
how ineffable this Mystery ! The soul is ravished 
with such a prodigy, a God, the Child of a Virgin ! 
He Who has spoken by the Prophets, Who has 
given His Law to mankind in the midst of thunder 
and lightning, He, the Creator of all things, the 
Divine Word, the Eternal Word of the Father, lies 
a speechless, nursing Babe, on the bosom of His 
Virgin Mother, through obedience to God His 
Father, rendering Him (the Father) the homage 


THE DIVINE MATEKNITY. 


339 


due His absolute power, by reducing Himself to 
the impotency of a little Child nourished with milk, 
which soon changed into His Precious Blood, will 
one day be shed for the salvation of the world ! 

“ He lies there, that Lamb of God destined for 
the Sacrifice, united to the breast of His Holy 
Mother, by the same obedience that will soon bind 
Him to the Cross. Oh ! how ravishing this con¬ 
templation ! But, after respectfully and lovingly 
contemplating the Divine Babe, my spirit turned to¬ 
wards His August Mother. Ah ! what must have 
been her emotions, on beholding her God, her 
Creator nourished with her substance ! What heart¬ 
felt thanks I give her for haviiig fed my Saviour 
with her precious milk, for having fattened, if I 
may thus express myself, the Victim of our Sal¬ 
vation ! 

“Yes, O holy Mary, nothing is as pure as thy 
virginal breast, because thou art blessed among 
women. It appears to me as a radiant sun of 
purity, as a fountain of grace ! Let us draw there¬ 
from, in order to be spiritually born to the Infancy 
of the new-born Jesus.” 

The Sister subsequently explains, that to corres¬ 
pond with the graces of this ineffable Mystery, Jesus 
requires of her great innocence of heart and a com¬ 
plete detachment from creatures. 

“ I must,” says she, “ imitate the virtues of His 
Infancy ; and for having once wandered a little from 
this path, I lost the presence of the Blessed Virgin 
and the Infant Jesus for a space of eight days ; but, 
humbling myself before God at the sight of my 
deep miseries, and weeping bitterly over my past 


340 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


sins, He infused into my soul sentiments of true 
sorrow ; and presently, like the father of the prodi¬ 
gal son, He gave me the kiss of peace and reconcili¬ 
ation, communicating Himself anew to my soul in 
the most intimate manner. 

“ Then, after making known to me the purity 
and the perfection I must have to be united to 
Him, my God and my All, He showed me the 
favors He destined for me, were I faithful in fol¬ 
lowing the lights of His grace. 

“ This communication produced a change in my 
soul. I again found the Infant Jesus at the vir¬ 
ginal breast of His Blessed Mother. Our Lord 
has several times made me understand that it was 
His Will I should adore Him in this state, which 
so few souls are capable of doing, as it requires 
exceeding purity of heart. 

u The demon came to torment me with tempta¬ 
tions, and make me relinquish my practices in honor 
of this Mystery; but, after I had submitted my 
disquietudes to the guide of my soul, and put his 
counsels in practice, this Angel of Darkness fled 
before the power of obedience.” 

The holy Carmelite continued to follow the Divine 
attraction. Whilst contemplating the Sweet Object 
presented to her interior gaze, she united herself with 
the Angels and the Holy Innocents, offering to God 
the Father, for the salvation of sinners, the spotless 
Lamb in His state of dependency and littleness, 
Jesus making her the while, a partaker of the celes¬ 
tial aliment He had received from His holy Mother 
when a nursing Babe. The happy Sister was thus 


THE DIVINE MATERNITY. 


341 


satiated with spiritual delights, filled with innocence 
and purity. 

“ My soul,” says she, “ is entirely lost in the con¬ 
templation of this ineffable Mystery. I think of it 
night and day. Once, when awake at one o’clock 
in the morning, I felt the presence of the Blessed 
Virgin in my soul ; she made known to me anew 
the treasures of grace contained in her sacred bosom, 
inviting me to imbibe freely from this source, and 
urging me to share my abundance with poor sinners. 
At Holy Communion on that same day, the Infant 
Jesus warned me to pray for the souls of the im¬ 
pure. ‘ I have prepared and purified you,” said 
He, ‘ now rise and seek souls for Me, that I may 
reign over them.’ Then He operated something in 
me which I cannot clearly comprehend ; I felt a 
weight of inexpressible sorrow, I was seemingly in 
the midst of a fire; my senses were bound by a 
Divine power, and I understood it was the AVill of 
the Infant Jesus I should combat the demon of 
pride and impurity, with the virtues and graces 
of His Holy Infancy. 

Live Jesus and Mary ! ” 

To the foregoing letter she adds a reflection which 
is worthy of notice : 

“ It may, perhaps, occasion astonishment to some, 
to see me, after spending four years in contemplat¬ 
ing the grandeur of the thrice Holy Name of God, 
now so absorbed in a Mystery regarded by many 
Christians as the most insignificant and least honor¬ 
able in the life of our Lord Jesus Christ. I shall 
not condemn those who may entertain this opinion ; 
for last year, without those lights which the Infant 
29* 


342 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


Jesus and His Holy Mother have since granted my 
soul, I perhaps might also have thought the same. 
But to-day, it is far otherwise, and from the com¬ 
munications I have received, and still receive even 
at this moment as I write, I declare, that this Mys¬ 
tery, as unknown as it is to the world, is, neverthe¬ 
less, great, admirable, ineffable ; its depths are pene¬ 
trated only by the Infant Jesus and the Virgin, His 
tender Mother. 

“ God forbid that I should imitate the example 
of the rebel angels, who, after contemplating the 
height and sublimity of the Divine perfections, re¬ 
fused to lower their proud gaze upon the humilia¬ 
tions of the Incarnate Word, and adore Him in this 
state of lowliness. Yes, O Divine Child, upon the 
virginal bosom of Thy Immaculate Mother, Thou 
art as worthy of our reverence and adoration, as in 
the Bosom of Thy Eternal Father ; Thou art and 
ever shalt be the God of Eternity.” * 

Marie de Saint-Pierre, as we perceive, does not 
wish Christians, when reading her narration, to be 
scandalized at the conduct of God in her regard. 

For the past four years she had been our Lord’s 
instrument in vindicating the honor of His Holy 
Name, He placing in her hands the Infinite merits 
of the great Mysteries of His Sacred Passion. And 
behold now, he offers to her contemplation, a Mys¬ 
tery seemingly the least and most obscure in His 
mortal Life. Does this evidence a diminution of 
grace on His part, or of love towards His servant? 
Is it not the tendency of the human mind to regard 


* Document C, Letter VI. 


THE DIVINE MATERNITY. 


343 


with indifference, if not with actual disdain, such 
an act as the suckling of the Man-God by a Virgin, 
His Mother? Is it not a detail unworthy the 
Majesty of God, and the dignity of man? And 
what spiritual benefit can result from thus making 
this Mystery the assiduous object of the soul’s con¬ 
templation ? 

The Sister answers these objections—“ There are, 
in the economy of the Incarnation, mysterious secrets 
and hidden treasures of wisdom, which the world 
disdains or ignores, but which are, therefore, none 
the less necessary for its instruction and salvation. 
Man, naturally independent and proud, dislikes to 
recall his origin and nothingness ; ignoring, as far 
as possible, the first natural necessities of his infancy, 
he wishes to regard himself only in the display of 
the strength and power of manhood, when, in his 
own opinion, he is absolute master of all other 
creatures, instead of being dependent on them. 
This pride, heir-loom of the original fault, finds its 
lesson and remedy in the humility and annihilation 
of the Son of God, who, appearing in the midst of 
us, has willed to be born, according to the condition 
of the children of men, to become a little Babe like 
one of them, and to need like them, the tender cares 
of a Mother. It is thus He is pleased to instruct 
our proud reason, and to correct our baneful spirit 
of independence, by recalling to our remembrance 
the first and humble services we necessarily received 
on our entrance into mortal existence. At the same 
time, to vindicate the rights of purity, which is 
always the most beautiful ornament of regenerated 
nature, He glorifies the chaste breast of His Im- 


344 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


maculate Mother, and in this milk, which was the 
food of His Infancy, He encloses for sinners, graces 
of the most tender and efficacious mercy.” * 

Behold, as says St. Paul, what “the wise and 
prudent of this world have not known ; and what, 
in our day, not even the majority of Christians have 
comprehended.” This abasement of the Word, was 
also the rock upon* which their pride wrecked the 
rebel Angels, as the Sister intimates, and not with¬ 
out reason, for such is the opinion of grave theo¬ 
logians. 

Lucifer and the rebel Angels, at the moment of 
trial, when confronted with the dogma of a God 
humbled, abased, even unto becoming a Babe and 
the Son of a Virgin, refused Him in this state, the 
adoration due His Divinity, which refusal consum¬ 
mated their reprobation. 

At thoughts of these rebellious Angels, and the 
innumerable human souls, who also refuse the hom¬ 
age of their narrow reason to the Mystery of the 
Incarnation of the Word, and the Divine Mater¬ 
nity, the daughter of Carmel exclaims with just and 
pious transports : 

“Thou art as worthy of our adoration on the 
virginal bosom of Thy Immaculate Mother, as in 
the Bosom of Thy Father \ ” 

This cry of love is a reparation for the first infer¬ 
nal blasphemy uttered against the honor of the In¬ 
carnate Word. Sister Saint-Pierre, but repeats the 
language of the Fathers and Doctors of the Church, 

* Vie de la Soeur Marie de Saint-Pierre de la Sainte-Famille, 
p. 236. 


THE DIVINE MATERNITY. 


345 


among others, that of St. Bernard, who speaking of 
the Word made Flesh, says, “The more He has 
made Himself vile and despicable for love of me, 
the more beautiful He is in my eyes, and the dearer 
to my heart.” * 

And the Church by the mouth of her ministers 
and children publicly chants in the hymns of her 
Divine Office : “ A little milk fed Him by whom 
all beings live.” f 

And again, “O glorious Mother, raised to the 
highest Heaven, He Who created thee became a 
little Babe, and upon thy bosom, thou didst nourish 
Him with thy virginal milk ! ” J 

And yet more—all persons obligated to say the 
Divine Office, or the Office of the Blessed Virgin, 
daily render praise to this Mystery, by the recitation 
of the Versicle and Response to the Prayer “Sacro- 
sanctæ : ” 

“V. Blessed is the womb of Mary the Virgin, 
which bore the Son of the Eternal Father. 

“R. And blessed are the breasts which gave suck 
to Christ the Lord.” || 

Let us add, that in the ages of Faith, the Virgin 
Mother nursing her Divine Infant was a Mystery 
familiar to Christian piety, and among our ances- 

* Quanto pro me vilior, tanto mihi carior. 

fEt lacté modico pastus est, Per quem nec ales esurit. 
(Christmas Hymn of Lauds). 

JO gloriosa virginum, Sublimis inter sidéra, Qui te creavit 
parvulum, Lactente nutris ubere. {Office of the Blessed Virgin, 
Hymn at Lauds). 

|| V. Beata Viscera Mariæ Virginis, quæ portaverunt æterni 
Patris Filium. 

R. Et beata ubera quæ lactaverunt Christum Dominum. 


346 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


tors, there were frequent representations of it in the 
works of art. 

It is the subject of a number of holy images, 
some of them venerated as miraculous, in the vari¬ 
ous churches of Ko me and throughout Catholic 
countries, Also, is it to be met with in our old 
paintings, and in those of the Northern school. 
That it has nearly disappeared from the religious 
art of our country, is doubtless OAving to the fact, 
that at a period not very remote from our own, the 
painters, not clearly comprehending its essential 
character of purity, probably displeased the taste of 
the pious. An artist of our own day, Mr. Halley, 
the pride of Touraine, has cut a charming engrav¬ 
ing for the benefit of the faithful, which he says, is 
copied from a painting of the fourteenth century, hon¬ 
ored in the Cathedral«of Sienna, under the title of Ohr 
Lady of Snows. It represents the Blessed Virgin, 
kneeling with ineffable modesty in profound adora¬ 
tion before the Divine Child, to whom she is giv¬ 
ing suck. A distich, inscribed upon the frame of 
the picture, expresses the following thought in an 
abridged form : 

“ O most Blessed Mother of God, let but the 
tiniest drop of thè sacred milk with which thou 
dost feed thy Divine Son whilst adoring Him, pene¬ 
trate as a chaste immaculate dew the very depths of 
my soul, rendering it holy and pure, that it may 
bring forth humility, confidence and courage, for the 
glory and love of Jesus, our Saviour and Father.” * 

*0 Virgo, O nivei, natum quo pascis adorans. 

Nostro utinam lactis roret vel guttula cordi. 


THE DIVINE MATERNITY. 


347 


These sentiments, as we perceive, are very similar 
to those animating the heart of the Carmelite of 
Tours, in the contemplation of this adorable object.* 

* Poetry and legend have vied with one another in making this 
Mystery the foundation of many beautiful and graceful fables ; 
for example, the first white rose is said to owe its immaculate 
hue, that even the lily envies, to contact with the Virgin’s 
milk. 

Holy Church keeps the Feast of the Maternity of the Blessed 
Virgin, on the 2d Sunday in October. 


CHAPTER XX. 


MERCY. 

I wish you to be very little, but to have a great heart. ( Our 
Lord's Wards.) 

It was not solely for her own spiritual benefit that 
Marie de Saint-Pierre was admitted, as we have just 
seen, to a participation in the sweet, mysterious 
fruits of the Infancy of the Word made Flesh. In 
this, as in all her former communications relative to 
the Church and souls, she had a higher and more 
general mission to fulfil. The Eternal Father had 
threatened with His vengeance a world that blas¬ 
phemed and outraged Him; and His irritated Justice 
had announced impending scourges. But a Mother 
of Mercy, the Virgin Mary, grieving over the offences 
of her guilty children, had interposed in their behalf. 
Tears had been wrung from her afflicted heart, and 
the children at La Salette had seen them silently 
trickling down her face. Likewise, at La Salette, 
were her hands hidden, for the moment of open¬ 
ing them to distribute graces had not yet arrived. 
But now that a new era has dawned, and a spirit of 
Reparation is beginning to overspread the land, she 
shows herself serene and compassionate; her eyes 
are lifted towards Heaven, her hands are open and 
348 


MERCY. 


349 


extended to intercede and bless; and from her 
maternal bosom flows a spring-tide of mercy, whence 
sinners may imbibe pardon and life. 

Such is the aspect, as new as it is consoling, under 
which the Mystery of the Divine Maternity is pre¬ 
sented to the daughter of Carmel. 

“ Our Lord,” says she, “ still keeps my soul ador¬ 
ing Him as a Babe upon His Mother’s bosom ; and 
it is here He imparts to me most admirable instruc¬ 
tions upon the Maternity of the Blessed Virgin as 
regards mankind, whose Mother she became at the 
foot of the Cross. Mary, having been called by 
God to be the Mother of all Christians, was entrusted, 
at the same time, with the mission of rearing and 
spiritually nourishing them ; hence, must she impart 
to their souls the milk of grace, thus associating 
them with her Maternal offices for Jesus her First- 
Born. 

The following communications, as we will per¬ 
ceive, develop this train of thought. 

August 13, 1847, the Sister begins her letter to 
the Mother Prioress, with an apology for her in¬ 
ability to render herself intelligible. 

“ How,” says she, “ can I express to you in feeble 
words, things so incomprehensible ? Yet, with the 
help of the Holy Infant Jesus, I will try to lisp a 
few sentences, which, though imperfectly framed, 
may give you some knowledge of the present state 
of my soul.” 

Then, in a transport of holy enthusiasm, she 
exclaims, u Ah ! if I did but know how to write or 
speak ! No, never until now, have I appreciated 
the precious legacy which our dying Jesus be- 
30 


350 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


queathed to us, in the person of His Blessed 
Mother. O mystery of clemency and love ! Hav¬ 
ing begotten us on the Cross amidst sufferings the 
most frightful, He placed us all, His new-born 
children in the arms of Mary, the tenderest of 
Mothers, that she might nourish and train us for 
eternal life. Wherefore, has He filled her breasts 
with the milk of grace and mercy ; and made her 
legatee of the immense riches He acquired during 
His laborious Life and dolorous Passion, in virtue 
of which, she becomes the admirable channel through 
which His infinite merits flow upon the Holy Church, 
His Spouse.” 

And how, we may ask, and wherefore has Mary 
been constituted legatee of the riches of Bedemp- 
tion? Listen to the explanation our Lord gives 
His servant : 

“I have again,” says she, “been enlightened 
upon this Mystery : the Holy Ghost formed our 
Divine Saviour’s adorable Body of Mary’s pure 
blood; hence, she had rights over this Sacred 
Body born of her, and this is why It was put 
in her maternal arms when taken from the Cross. 
Our amiable Jesus has made me understand, 
that He wished to return her, all He had received 
from her, for the accomplishment of the world’s 
Bedemption. She had nourished Him with her 
most pure milk ; in gratitude, Jesus gave her His 
Blood, and constitutes her its depositary. Yes, she 
stands at the foot of the Cross to receive this sacred 
treasure, in the precious vase of her maternal Heart ! 
Mary had given Jesus His Adorable Body, and 
Jesus at death, returned It to her, adorned with 


MERCY. 


351 


His glorious Wounds, that she might draw from 
those sacred fountains, eternal life for the children 
His love had begotten to her with His last sight. 
Yes, Jesus with all His treasures belongs to Mary, 
and Mary, with all her tenderness, belongs to man¬ 
kind ! Oh ! how exceeding great this Mother’s 
mercy ! She extends to us her maternal arms ; she 
invites us to partake of the milk of grace contained 
in her virginal bosom ; her Heart is always open to 
receive us ! ” 

These lights communicated to the Sister upon the 
general aspects of the Mystery, were to prepare her 
for more direct and especial illuminations. The 
Infant Jesus and the Blessed Virgin will, each in 
turn, vouchsafe to instruct her. Let us hearken to 
these words of our Lord speaking in the interior of 
her soul : u As long as man is upon earth, he is in a 
state of infancy ; in Heaven alone, does he reach the 
perfection of his being, wherefore, like a little child, 
must he unceasingly have recourse to his Mother.” 

“ Yes,” exclaims our Carmelite^ “ in. God’s light, 
I see clearly that man must ever cling to His 
Mother, the Blessed Virgin, to attain that perfect 
maturity realized only in Eternity. Behold the 
two great Mysteries of the Maternity of Mary which 
the Infant Jesus wishes to teach me : Mary, Mother 
of God, and Mary, Mother of the human race. 
Wherefore, He continues to present Himself to my 
contemplation, as an Infant at His Mother’s bosom, 
thus teaching me by example to have recourse to 
her, and be nourished with the milk of her virtues.” 

In turn, the Blessed Virgin herself instructs the 
holy confidante of her Divine Son. “ She has made 


352 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


me understand,” says the Sister, “ that even in the 
same manner as she selects certain places for the 
scene of her especial favors, so had she chosen my 
soul to be the theatre of her mercies. It was not 
long ere I experienced the effects of this promise ; 
for to-day, after Holy Communion, the Infant Jesus 
appeared to me at the bosom of His Mother, and 
more clearly made known His Will : ‘ This Mys¬ 
tery is a treasure hidden in the field of His Church, 
and He reveals it to whomsoever He pleases. Some 
souls He has placed on earth to honor the Mysteries 
of His Passion, and upon these He has imprinted 
His holy Stigmata. As for myself, He has called 
me, notwithstanding my unworthiness, to be identi¬ 
fied with His earliest Infancy, and having prepared 
me in advance for this favor, He deigns to-day, 
through Holy Communion, to unite me to Himself, 
by making me enter into His adorable Heart, that 
thus I may approach the chaste bosom of His 
August Mother/ It is He who leads me to this 
fountain of grace, and benediction, telling me to im¬ 
bibe the milk of divine mercy, in the same spirit of 
charity as Himself when a babe—that milk He 
received for all men, and which He imparted to 
them in shedding His Blood upon the Cross. He 
made me understand, that following His example, I 
must avail myself of this mysterious refreshment not 
only for myself, but for all my brethren, causing it 
to descend as a celestial and purifying dew, upon a 
world full of corruption, and blasted by the fire of 
concupiscence.” 

The Sister also says she seemed to hear our Lord 
saying to her, “ I wish you to be very little, but you 


MERCY. 


353 


She adds, “The following short prayer I have 
been inspired to use in obtaining this mysterious 
refreshment from Mary’s maternal bosom : ” 

“ O most holy and worthy Mother of God, impart 
abundantly to all mankind, thy children, the milk 
of grace and mercy.” The Blessed Virgin told 
Sister Saint-Pierre that she was indebted to our 
Lord’s pure bounty for so inestimable a privilege, 
for which she must ever be grateful. 

At the end of this account, the Sister adds : “ My 
most Reverend Mother, how is it possible for me to 
acquaint you with a knowledge of my feelings dur¬ 
ing this operation of grace? Oh ! admirable beyond 
bounds and incomprehensible is it, to find oneself, as 
a babe united to Jesus upon the bosom of Mary, His 
Blessed Mother ! Oh ! in what abundance she gives 
this milk of mercy. ‘The source,’ as she said to 
me, ‘ is inexhaustible.’ But, alas ! who am I, mis¬ 
erable, unworthy creature, that I should be thus 
deputed to draw from this fountain for the salvation 
of sinners ? I have prostrated myself to the earth 
in deepest self-abasement, and I have acknowledged 
before God, my unworthiness for such a mission ; 
however, in choosing the weakest instruments, does 
the Lord but the more clearly reveal the plenitude 
of His power.” 

Concerning this “milk of mercy presented by 
Mary for the salvation of sinners,” the holy Car¬ 
melite, as is her wont, makes a remark not unworthy 
of a theologian. She supposes the following objec¬ 
tion, and then answers it (to quote her own words), 
“ according to the knowledge I have received on this 
subject. The most pure milk of the Blessed Virgin, 
30* 


354 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


one will say, is assuredly venerable. St. Louis, 
king of France, brought a few drops of it from the 
Holy Land, and he esteemed it as one of the most 
precious of his royal treasures ; *—but we may not, 
in truth, assert that it has the power of purifying 
sinners, this prerogative belonging only to our Lord’s 
precious Blood. Ah ! this was precisely my own 
mode of reasoning ere our Lord deigned to instruct 
me. And here is the substance of what He has 
taught me on this subject : It is certain that the 
milk of the most Blessed Virgin, upon which the 
Incarnate Word was nourished in Infancy, had not 
then the virtue of sanctifying souls, and it would be 
an error to believe that it had ; but, having filled 
our Divine Saviour’s veins, it became the Blood of 
a God. By the Redemption, we were made children 
of the Eternal Father and brethren of our Lord 
Jesus Christ; hence, the Mother of Jesus has be¬ 
come our Mother. Wherefore, her Divine Son has 
established her the depositary of the riches and 
infinite merits of His Life and Passion ; He returned 
to her the adorable Body and Blood received from 
her ; He has filled her paps with a mysterious and 
divine milk, to feed the new children begotten on 
the Cross, and of whom she is the Mother in the 
order of grace. Therefore, when he sends me to 
Mary’s bosom, to seek the milk of mercy for sin¬ 
ners’ salvation, the act implies nothing contrary to 

* In support of this assertion is cited a letter, addressed by 
the king to the canons and clergy of the cathedral of Toledo, in 
which he mentions having sent to their church, among other 
gifts to the Archbishop, “ Some of the milk of the glorious Vir¬ 
gin Mary.” (See Father D’Argentan, Confer. XVIII, Art. 6). 


MERCY. 


355 


Faith or the doctrine of the Church, for this Church 
calls her the ‘ Refuge of Sinners/ ‘ the Treasurer of 
her Divine Son ; , and hence, these virginal paps and 
the mysterious milk of which I have spoken, are an 
image of the sweetness of grace and of the effusion 
of mercy/ 

Filled with new transports of joy and gratitude, 
the servant of God exclaims: “Hail Mary, con¬ 
ceived without sin, mysterious vine which has pro¬ 
duced the Divine Grape, destined to be crushed in 
the wine-press of the Cross, whence issued a sacred 
wine that was deposited in the precious vase of your 
holy Heart, to be distilled upon the children whose 
Mother you became on Calvary’s Mount ! ” * 

We give our readers the following explanation of 
the above mentioned notice of the Blessed Virgin’s 
milk, brought by King Louis from the Holy Land. 
The circumstance we are about to relate is borrowed 
from the Annals of the Carmelite convent. In 
1850, a young priest of Tours, the Reverend Abbé 
Leduc, Professor of Scripture at the Grand Semin¬ 
ary, and a learned Oriental scholar,f had just re¬ 
turned from a journey in Palestine. This was two 
years after the death of Marie de Saint-Pierre. 

Immediately on his arrival, he hastened to visit 
the good Carmelites who had generously provided 
the means for his primary ecclesiastical education. 

* Document C, Letter VII. 

f The Rev. Abbé Leduc, who is still remembered in our dio¬ 
cese, made two voyages to the East, in the latter of which he 
died, September 1, 1852, at Mariaco, a village of Kurdistan, 
near Nineveh, whose ruins he had gone to visit. He was only 
thirty years of age. 


356 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


Among the many pleasant incidents of travel he 
related, one especially, struck the attention of the 
Mother Prioress and her Secretary, Sister Teresa of 
St. Joseph, by reason of its affinity to certain celes¬ 
tial communications of our cherished Sister, of which 
their positions had made them cognizant. The 
young traveller told them, that he had seen in the 
vicinity of Bethlehem a grotto, in which, according 
to tradition, the Blessed Virgin had nursed her 
Divine Child. A drop of the holy milk fell upon 
the rock, which at once turned white, and was 
henceforth endowed with wondrous gifts for nurs¬ 
ing mothers. All the women of the neighborhood, 
Jews, Christians, and even Moslems, have so great 
confidence in its virtue, that when unable to suckle 
their children, they come thither to pray, and get a 
little of the dust from this • rock, which, being a 
friable chalk, is easily reduced to powder. Might 
it not be a fragment of this which St. Louis brought 
to France? It is not at all unlikely, for the spot 
bears the name of the “Milk Grotto.” In a broad 
sense, this might be regarded as a relic, or, if one 
prefers the expression, a souvenir of the chaste nurs¬ 
ing of the Son of God by His Mother, not far from 
the spot where the Mystery of the Divine Mater¬ 
nity was accomplished. We must also bear in mind 
that according to well-accredited legends, the Blessed 
Virgin either directly, or from some of her miracu¬ 
lous images, has allowed a few drops of milk to flow. 
Be the origin of this “milk of the Blessed Virgin,” 
what it may, we know that several churches claim 
to have been enriched by the possession of so pre¬ 
cious a relic; for instance, those of Assissium in 


MERCY. 


357 


Italy, Oviedo in Spain, Paris, Besaçon, Reims and 
Puy in France.* 

During the course of a month, Sister Saint-Pierre 
continued to receive new communications upon this 
subject, and she was again reminded that these 
graces were granted her, not for herself alone, but 
for all her fellow creatures. On one occasion, 
France was especially designated as the object of the 
Divine Mercies ; thereby recalling to this daughter 
of Carmel, those sweet and consoling revelations of 
the primary designs some time since manifested to 
her for the salvation of her native land. 

At the beginning of her letter of September 14, to 
the Mother Prioress, she says : “ The Infant Jesus, 
as He promised, keeps me united to Him in His 
holy Infancy. But how shall I be able to speak 
intelligibly of these operations, as admirable as they 
are extraordinary ? Yes, I acknowledge in all sim¬ 
plicity, that it is only love of obedience which forces 
me to mention the subject. It was through obedi- 

* Rev. J. J. Bourassé gives some very interesting details on 
this subject, ( Historié de la Viei'ge Marie, p. 363, &c.). The fol¬ 
lowing circumstance came under his personal knowledge. In 
1854, we were commissioned by His Eminence Cardinal Morlot, 
Archbishop of Tours, to verify some relics contained in a little 
leaden box in an altar. Among the relics of martyrs, we found 
a fragment of white rock resembling alabaster, and wrapped in 
a piece of parchment, on which was written : De lacté B. Mariæ 
Virginis, “Milk of the Blessed Virgin Mary.” Attached to a 
convent of Dominicans, at Le Mans, there was formerly a 
chapel called “Notre-Dame des Marais,” and according to a 
reliable tradition, these Religious had possessed since the year 
1219, a precious relic of the “ Milk of the most Blessed Virgin,” 
which was still preserved with great veneration in this monas¬ 
tery, in the middle of the seventeenth century. 


358 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


ence, I answered the call of the Infant Jesus, Who 
led me to the bosom of His Divine Mother, through 
obedience to my superiors, I have remained at this 
fountain of grace, and it is still under the star of 
obedience, I shall write. May its gentle radiance 
enlighten my soul, and preserve it from falling into 
the snares of the demon. 

“ One day during prayer, the Holy Spirit made 
known to me the purity of the virginal bosom of 
the Mother of God ; and my soul, elevated to the 
contemplation of that sun of dazzling light and 
purity, tasted ineffable delights.” * 

In raptures of joy, she adds : “ The Infant Jesus, 
notwithstanding my extreme unworthiness, has united 
my soul to Himself, and given me a share of the 
mysterious milk of His holy Mother. I have been 
allowed to imbibe from these miraculous founts, the 
milk of grace and mercy for my sinful self and 
fellow creatures—all poor sinners—and I have been 
told that through this privilege granted me by the 
Holy Infant Jesus, I would obtain great favors for 
France,—also, that I was only an instrument which 
God willed to use for His greater glory. Therefore, 
I clearly perceive that these graces are not personally 
my own, that forgetting self in a measure, I must 
regard my soul as a vase in the hands of the Infant 
Jesus, which, filled from this mysterious fountain, 
must, instead of hoarding its treasures, diffuse them 
upon the souls of men, to purify and refresh them. 
The greater glory of God and the salvation of souls— 
be this the cry of my heart. Freely I receive, and 


* Document C, Letter VIII. 


MERCY. 


359 


freely must I give, knowing that I am, in all this, 
only the little steward of the Infant Jesus ; and Oh ! 
may I be faithful to His interests, for one day, will 
He demand an account of my stewardship.” 

Then suddenly returning to that “ hidden treas¬ 
ure,” as she styles the sweet Mystery of the Holy 
Infancy, she exclaims : “ Oh ! what deep emotions 
stir the soul at contemplation of an Infant God at 
His Mother’s breast! The Eternal Word wrapped 
in swaddling clothes ! The Eternal Word of the 
Father reduced to silence! All the Infinite perfec¬ 
tions of the Living God hidden under the veil of 
humanity ! The Almighty reduced to impotency ! 
Greatness become littleness ! Oh ! what glory the 
Infant Jesus rendered His Father, whilst in that 
state of poverty and humiliation, for it was by this 
suspension of His Divine works, He offered homage 
to His Father’s absolute power. What marvels He 
might have enacted on His entrance into the world ! 
And yet, did He forego all these to obey His Father, 
and set us the example of the most profound humility ! 
After this consideration I said to myself : ‘ Oh ! how 
priceless in the eyes of the Eternal Father, this one 
phase in the Life of the Incarnate Word, His being 
nourished for fifteen months from the bosom of the 
Virgin Mary, for does it not imply an annihilation 
of His power, His wisdom, all His faculties ? ’ O 
Mystery, profound and ineffable! The more He 
abases Himself in the eyes of men, the greater is He 
in the sight of the Eternal Father. It was one day 
revealed to me, that the Celestial Father would 
always grant my petitions when asked in the Name 
of the Infant Jesus upon His Mother’s bosom. 


360 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


Yes, O Divine Infant, in this state of humiliation 
and littleness, Thou art as worthy of our love, our 
homage and adoration, as when later, Thou didst 
cure the sick, raise the dead to life, and command 
the winds and waves. 

“Here, do I contemplate Thee silent and un¬ 
known, adoring Thy Eternal Father’s counsels 
upon Thy Life and dolorous Passion; already, is 
the Cross planted in Thy Heart; Thou dost only 
await the hour marked by Thy Heavenly Father 
for Thee to fulfil His Will.” 

It was at this time, Jesus foretold His little 
servant, He was going to make her participate in 
His chalice of bitterness, and He commissioned her 
to pray in a very especial manner for certain sinful 
souls who were offending Him. “ I obeyed,” says 
the Sister, “and the demon, doubtless because he 
feared these souls would escape his grasp, has terri¬ 
bly tormented me. The Blessed Virgin has told 
me, however, that I must persevere in these devo¬ 
tions, notwithstanding the efforts of my enemies. 
The devil will not fight with a little child, he is too 
proud for that kind of warfare, and this is why he 
uses every possible means to avert the eyes of my 
soul from the Mystery of the Divine Maternity.” 

Warned of her reserved portion of the “ chalice 
of bitterness,” she soon returns to this subject: 
“ Our Lord,” says she, “ made known to me a few' 
days ago, that whilst nursing at His most Holy 
Mother’s breast, He also sucked the paps of His 
Father’s rigorous Justice, and that the like bitter 
portion was in store for me. I now r enter upon the 
fulfilment of this prediction, I behold the Divine 


MERCY. 


361 


Babe, filled with sorrow, overwhelmed with the 
sins of the world, and already carrying the Cross in 
His Heart.” 

And this spectacle inspired our Sister with the 
following reflection : 

“ Oh ! what a mysterious similarity I perceive 
between Jesus hanging upon Mary’s bosom, and 
Jesus attached to the Cross! Under both aspects 
do I regard Him as a victim, suspended between 
Heaven and earth. I behold the Queen of Martyrs, 
her Heart already pierced by the sword of sorrow, 
nourishing with her own substance, that Adorable 
Body which is to suffer for us in His Sacred Pas¬ 
sion, and I behold Jesus, the Saviour of the world, 
filling His Sacred veins with that Precious Blood 
He is one day to shed upon Calvary.” 

Cardinal * Haïlgrinus comparing the drops of 
milk the most Blessed Virgin gave our Divine 
Redeemer, with those of blood the maityrs shed for 
Him, asserts that the most Blessed Virgin, in truth, 
acquired greater merit by her milk than the martyrs 
by their blood. And is it not so, since that blood 
was shed only in defence of the Faith, and this 

*John, surnamed Haïlgrinus, who was born at Abbeville, 
created Cardinal by Pope Gregory IX in 1227, and died in 
1237. He has left posterity some memorials of his enlightened 
doctrine, in his rich commentaries upon the Canticle of Canti¬ 
cles. ( Histoire générale des Cardinaux, t. I., p. 258). Sister 
Saint-Pierre in quoting this learned Cardinal, on the merits the 
Blessed Virgin acquired, by the suckling of the Word, always 
supposes it understood, with what purity and perfection of 
virtue Mary performed this maternal duty, and which beyond 
a doubt far surpassed the merits of the Martyrs and all the 
Saints. 


31 


362 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


milk was given for the nourishment of the Ador¬ 
able Person of the Incarnate Word, more noble 
than aught else. 

“ Hail Mary, Queen of Martyrs, whose precious 
blood, blanched by maternal piety, flowed for fifteen 
months from thy Virginal bosom, to fill the Sacred 
Veins of the King of Martyrs ! ” 

This tender and poetic effusion seems a natural 
outburst of our pious Sister’s soul. Being con¬ 
stantly in the presence of such ravishing Mysteries, 
she felt the interior powers of her soul gradually 
expanding and soaring to higher contemplations. 
Her mind was inundated with a flood of supernat¬ 
ural lights. Divinely urged, she yields to the neces¬ 
sity of imparting to her Superiors a knowledge of 
these communications, hence, her letter of Novem¬ 
ber, 1847, which begins with that childlike gayety 
peculiar to the early days of her novitiate : 

“ I say in all the simplicity of my soul, that if I 
were a theologian, I could write an admirable treatise 
on the glory of Jesus and His holy Mother, but being 
only the poor ass of the Infant Jesus, speech is incom¬ 
patible with my condition ; nevertheless, remember¬ 
ing that Balaam’s ass spoke in the Old Law, I, of 
the New Law, shall make bold to follow its exam¬ 
ple, and say a few words on this subject so dear to 
my heart.” 

She then quoted certain passages of Holy Writ, 
that had struck her attention, whilst reciting the 
Divine Office, or in her spiritual reading. 

And now, enlightened by the spirit which leads 
her, as to the meaning hidden under the Liturgie 
veil, and its marvellous applications, this daughter 


MEECY. 363 

of Carmel intones a hymn of praise, a chant of tri¬ 
umph in honor of Mary’s Maternity : 

“ O holy Virgin, how pure and admirable thou 
art. The Holy Ghost seems ever occupied with 
thee. At thy birth, I hear Him saying in His 
Divine Council, ‘ Our Sister is little .’ ... ‘ What 

shall we do to our Sister in the day when she is to be 
spoken to ? ’ 

“ In my simplicity, it seems to me, that this event¬ 
ful day is the one on which the Angel Gabriel 
delivers to her his solemn message ; it is the moment 
of that blessed fiat , of that consoling word which 
announces the dawn of our salvation. 

“ That moment marked in God’s decrees has come. 
Mary found grace before the Lord, and conceived 
the Divine Word by the operation of the Holy 
Ghost. I hear the August Virgin announcing to 
the human race, her happiness and the wondrous 
news of the Incarnation, ( I to my Beloved and my Be¬ 
loved to me.’ . . . 

“ O mystery ineffable ! He who eternally reposes 
in the Bosom of the Father, rests, at the same time, 
in the bosom of an humble Virgin. I adore Thee, 
most Holy Infant Jesus, in that royal shrine sur¬ 
rounded by roses and lilies; my soul experiences 
joy inexpressible at beholding Thee dwelling in that 
House of Gold , built by Supreme Wisdom ! 

“But behold, humanity awaits Thee; for four 
thousand years, has all nature sighed for Thy 
blessed Birth, loudly crying to Heaven and earth, 

‘ Who shall give Thee to me for my brother, suck¬ 
ing the breast of my mother, that I may find Thee 
without?’ Come forth, O Divine Jesus, from the 


364 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


virginal prison where love holds Thee captive, give 
me the consolation of beholding and adoring Thee, 
and in a state that I may embrace Thee ! Let us 
rejoice ! for do not these words of the august Mary 
bid us hope that we shall soon see our yearnings 
fulfilled : i A bundle of myrrh is my beloved to me, 
he shall abide between my breasts, .... soon you 
shall see him ? y 

“ The day of joy hath come at last ; and the Angels 
sing in heavenly strains, ‘ Glory be to God on High, 
and on earth, peace to men of good will/ 

“ The hour of man’s salvation has dawned, behold 
His Saviour, born of Mary ! O earth, thou didst 
become a Heaven on that day eternally memorable ! 
O glorious Mother of God ! my hopes are realized, 
my yearnings satisfied ! now that I find Jesus my 
Redeemer, in thy holy arms, resting upon thy 
maternal bosom, nourished with thy virginal milk. 
It is at this hour, I again hear the Heavenly Spouse 
felicitating thee on thy blessed Maternity, saying to 
thee, ‘ Thou art all fair, O my beloved, and there is 
no spot in thee.’ Yes, august Mother, thou art all 
beautiful in the eyes of thy Divine Spouse, because 
thou alone hast preserved perfect the beautiful 
flower of Virginity, at the same time, producing 
the richest fruit of fecundity. Thou art a Virgin 
before, during and after the birth of thy most 
beloved Son. Whilst Angels in Heaven sing the 
eternal Canticle of the thrice Holy God, we on 
earth, sing the virginal canticle of the Mother 
thrice a Virgin.” 

Where has our Carmelite learned such sublime 
and graceful language? She humbly acknowledges 


MEKCY. 


365 


that it was whilst “ at prayer, meditation.” “ Yon 
see my Reverend Mother,” says she, “ that in Scrip¬ 
ture, the Holy Ghost never ceases to extol Mary’s 
virginal Maternity; and this Divine Teacher of 
Doctors, has, in His Mercy, willed to impart some 
knowledge of this lofty subject to His little servant, 
that she may honor with increased confidence a 
Mystery so ineffable, so worthy of our adorations ; a 
Mystery, which every Christian cannot appreciate, 
our Lord manifesting it to but few, granting these, 
at the same time, especial graces to understand it, 
and bless Him in the name of all to whom it 
remains unknown.” She finishes with the follow¬ 
ing invocation : “ O most pure Mother of God, 
make known to our souls, the profound Mystery of 
thy virginal Maternity, and distil for thy beloved 
children, that precious and holy milk of the Divine 
Mercy ! ” 

This petition inspired by the Sister’s ardent love 
for the Church and souls, was soon to be answered, 
as is evidenced by the following communication to 
her venerable Prioress, November 8, 1847. 

“ Since the last day I wrote, giving you an ac¬ 
count of my conscience, it has pleased our Lord and 
His Holy Mother to operate many things in the 
soul of this, their most unworthy servant. For 
nearly five months, have the Infant Jesus and His 
tender Mother dwelt in the little chapel of my heart, 
and thus am I ever contemplating the ravishing 
mystery of the Divine Maternity. 

“ O grandeur of Mary ! O incomparable privilege, 
which heretofore I have never sufficiently pondered 
or appreciated ! O Blessed Virgin, thou givest suck 
31* 


366 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


to thy tender Creator, thou dost nourish the Bread 
of Life Who feedest all beings! Be eternally 
blessed for having furnished the most pure blood 
forming the Adorable Body of our Saviour. Be 
thou blessed again, for having given to the Infant 
Jesus thy milk, which this Divine Redeemer changed 
into Blood, to flow upon us from His opened Side 
and all His Sacred Wounds. My Reverend Mother, 
I tremble at sight of my miseries and incapacity, as 
I am now about to speak of an admirable Mystery 
of mercy and love, which the Blessed Virgin has 
confided to this poor little servant of the Infant 
Jesus. By remaining silent, I grieve my holy 
Mother, and yet, I fear to speak, lest I fail in prop¬ 
erly rendering her heavenly language. I therefore 
supplicated her to guide my pen. 

“ Since Holy Communion yesterday, I have been 
under the influence of a signal grace. I have be¬ 
held, I have heard most ravishing things ; several 
times has the Blessed Virgin deigned to manifest her¬ 
self to me. This August Mother has appeared to 
me, in the interior of my soul, but the Divine Infant 
was not in her arms ; she was alone. I beheld her 
virginal milk flowing in torrents, and the Angels 
receiving it in celestial vessels. I prayed them to 
pour it out upon the clergy, upon the houses of our 
holy Order, upon all mankind. My soul was rav¬ 
ished at the spectacle! In the evening, the same 
marvel being again presented to my contemplation, 
I felt urged to ask the Blessed Virgin the explana¬ 
tion of it. I supplicated the Angels to waft my 
prayer to her, and prostrating myself at her feet, I 
said : ‘Omy good Mother, tell me the meaning of 


MERCY. 


367 


such a prodigy? Last year, thou didst descend upon 
earth * to make known to us thy Son’s anger, and 
to announce the advent of woes ; and now, I behold 
thee showering upon us torrents of grace.’ . . . 

“The Blessed Virgin answered, ‘ Yes, my daugh¬ 
ter, last year I appeared without my Son,—the 
earth was not worthy of a visit from Him ; and I 
announced woes which had inevitably come to pass, 
but for my mediation. I presented my bosom to 
my irritated Son, I showed Him the paps which had 
suckled Him, and He revoked the pending decree 
of famine ; out of regard for the love with which I 
had nourished Him with my milk, He has consented 
not to deprive my other children of bread ; and His 
arm raised to strike, has fallen powerless upon my 
bosom, causing to gush thence torrents of milk, to 
refresh and purify the earth.’ 

“At these words, I exclaimed: ‘O mystery of 
love ! mystery of love ! ’ The Blessed Virgin 
added : ‘Acquaint your Superiors with this, so that 
a knowledge of my mercy may be as well known to 
mankind, as was that of the calamities with which 
God threatened them—this will prove the mysteri¬ 
ous pow 7 er of my bosom.’ She then spoke very 
encouragingly of the Work of the Beparation. 
‘My Son,’ said she, ‘will, at the appointed hour, 
make use of means now concealed in the treasury of 
His Providence.’ 

“ This is the substance of what the Blessed Vir¬ 
gin communicated to me, and I now feel so fully 
convinced that she appeared to the two little chil- 


*Allusion to the words of the Virgin at La Salette. 


368 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


clren at La Salette, that I would sign my belief with 
my blood, were it necessary, for the glory of my 
tender Mother. It was on the Mount of Sorrows 
she adopted us as her children; upon a mountain 
also does she come to fulfil the office of a good and 
generous Mother ; and in announcing to men that 
they have merited by their offences, deprivation of 
the food necessary to sustain life, she, at the same 
time, shows them her bosom, whence will flow the 
milk of mercy. Yes, by an especial light, do I see 
that mysterious mountain as an emblem of the Blessed 
Virgin, and that mysterious fountain gushing forth 
after the Apparition, as the symbol of Mary’s most 
pure bosom, inexhaustible source of grace, whose 
limpid waters are ever refreshing and purifying 
souls. Ah ! what return shall we make to this 
amiable Mother ? 

“ O happy people of France, cherished children 
of Mary, let us strive to appreciate the tender char¬ 
ity of our August Mother, to whom we owe our sal¬ 
vation ! Let us bless her whilst eating our daily 
bread, for we are indebted to her intercession for it. 
And oh ! let us be converted to the Lord, let us 
approach His throne with humility, but especially 
with confidence, for we have powerful mediators : 
the Son near His Father, and the Mother near her 
Son ! The Son showeth to His Father His opened 
Side, and the countless Wounds He has received ; 
the Mother to her Son, the bosom and paps which 
have fed Him, both pleading our cause with voices 
of blood and milk, flowing from their hearts. Will 
the Son refuse. His Mother’s petitions in our behalf? 
or the Father refuse the Son’s? Do we fear Him 


MERCY. 


369 


by reason of the enormity of our crimes ? Ah, then, 
to these two precious streams, the Blood of Jesus 
and Mary’s milk, let us unite our tears, thus form¬ 
ing, as it were, a powerful trinity which may, even 
on earth, be a pledge of our salvation.” 

Here, the holy Carmelite seems to pause; then 
presently resumes her cherished theme : 

“ The promises regarding the salvation of France 
will be fulfilled, if the Work of the Reparation is 
propagated according to the wishes of our Lord Jesus 
Christ. And furthermore, since the most Blessed 
Virgin has saved France from impending woes, it 
is but just that in return, at least a few souls, strive 
to honor her in the name of the whole nation, nour¬ 
ished unconsciously, as it were, with this tender 
Mother’s mysterious milk. And it is in memory of 
this heroic act of charity to France, that notwith¬ 
standing my unworthiness, I have been chosen to 
honor the Mystery of her Divine Maternity.” 

An event to which our Sister attaches some im¬ 
portance confirms her in this belief. These latter 
communications had implanted in her heart a great 
longing for a picture representing the touching Mys¬ 
tery, now the habitual subject of her thoughts. 

Yet, notwithstanding the kindness of the Mother 
Prioress to her, she did not dare make the request, 
which, moreover, could not very easily have been 
granted, as the straitened pecuniary circumstances 
of the Community, consequent upon the erection 
of their new convent, could ill brook such an ex¬ 
pense merely to gratify the private devotion of a 
single nun. 


370 LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 

However, Marie de Saint-Pierre did not lose 
courage; addressing herself with confidence to the 
Blessed Virgin and the Infant Jesus, she besought 
them, in her usual simplicity of heart, to send her 
the coveted pàinting, and she recited a Laudate of 
thanksgiving in advance. Iso one had ever heard 
her mention the subject, when behold, a pious lady 
makes the Community a most unexpected present of 
the very picture, the Infant Jesus nourished at His 
Mother’s breast. Judge of our dear Sister’s joy and 
surprise ! Marvelling at the coincidence, she consid¬ 
ered it a token of the mission with which she had 
lately been charged, and a memorial of the Blessed 
Virgin’s mediation in behalf of France. 

The happy confidante of Mary thus expresses the 
conclusion to be deduced from these astonishing 
communications regarding the Divine Maternity : 

“ It is easy to perceive that these communications 
are not foreign to the Work of the Reparation, of 
which I have already spoken ; but, on the contrary, 
are intimately associated with it. Let us consider : 
First, the Lord appeared to me, greatly incensed 
against France, on account of her numberless sins of 
blasphemy and the universal violation of the Lord’s 
day; and He threatened to engulf our perfidious 
country in the waters of His ire, were not atonement 
offered for these outrages against the glory of His 
Name—likewise, did He several times promise par¬ 
don if His commands were executed. 

After great contradictions, excited by Satan, the 
Reparation has at last seen the. light in France, and 
the Lord, faithful to His word, has restrained His 
wrath, and Mercy has succeeded Justice, in token of 


MERCY. 


371 


which, He has caused a mysterious milk to flow 
upon France, through the medium of His holy 
Mother, the channel of His graces ! The contem¬ 
plation of God’s Justice terrifies me, that of His 
Mercy now fills me with raptures.” 

The connection Sister Saint-Pierre here estab¬ 
lishes, between the announcement of “ Justice ” and 
that of u Mercy,” twofold object of her mission, is a 
striking reminder of the two miraculous events of 
our times, La Salette and Lourdes. At La Salette, 
Justice is dominant, Justice which warns and threat¬ 
ens. At Lourdes, it is Mercy , inviting and consol¬ 
ing. Both, in turn, have sent a thrill through 
France, and imprinted upon her a double character, 
peculiar to this era of wide-spread impiety and 
generous expiation, a circumstance M. Dupont has 
not failed to notice in his notes upon Sister Saint- 
Pierre. 

“ At Tours,” says he, “ our Lord speaks to His 
servant, and announces the merciful visits of His 
most holy Mother. At La Salette, Mary, seated 
upon the rock, sheds tears; she bears upon her 
bosom the symbols of the Passion, she bitterly 
bewails the countless sins of blasphemy which 
wound the Divine Majesty, she predicts scourges ;— 
but in order that her visit to earth may not be 
without fruit, she says, and even urges it, that she 
wishes her sorrows proclaimed Go her people;’ 
meaning, beyond doubt, to the humble and simple ; 
for the wise according to this world, are not capable 
of understanding the miracle of the Apparition, 
whilst the lowly, on the contrary, believed from the 
first; and they must likewise have prayed, for we 


372 LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 

have reason to think they obtained a respite, since 
a few years later, in 1858, the most Blessed Virgin 
manifests herself at Lourdes clothed in garments 
of gladness ;—she opens those hands, which, at La 
Salette, had been hidden, and triumphantly calls 
herself ‘the Immaculate Conception/ Twice did 
she proffer a request that we may regard as a pledge 
of peace,—the erection of a Church. All this bids 
us hope for a brighter future.” * 

This “ brighter future,” no doubt, the incompar¬ 
able and consoling spectacle Lourdes now presents 
to us, seems prefigured by that effusion of “the 
milk of grace and mercy,” so strikingly depicted by 
the daughter of Carmel. 

A child, Bernadette Soubirous, was also per¬ 
mitted to contemplate a sweet and sublime Mystery, 
defined some years ago by the Church, and destined 
to reign in all hearts, for suddenly does it burst 
upon the world that Mary’s Immaculate Conception 
is the inexhaustible channel of grace. But what 
especial grace is most needed .by sinners who have 
profaned and abused all others, if it be not an 
infinite and maternal mercy, which will obtain their 
pardon from a justly irritated Heavenly Father? 
Behold, a miraculous fountain springs up beneath 
the rock on which the Apparition stood,—symbol 
and visible principle of the countless benedictions, 
lights and graces, which have since never ceased to 
flow upon France ! Did Marie de Saint-Pierre fore¬ 
see these marvels, in her communications re^ardino* 
the Divine Maternity ? We know not ; for we have 


* Document T, p. 12. 


MERCY. 


373 


no evidence of it in her writings or elsewhere ; but 
we may say, that without knowing all the secrets of 
the veiled future, the pious Carmelite has, at least, 
clearly perceived and portrayed this double seal “ of 
Justice and Mercy,” so ineffaceably stamped upon 
our country ; and she has regarded it both as a 
token and a proof, that God, notwithstanding our 
wanderings, is unwilling to forsake the Eldest 
Daughter of His Church. Prepared, from her ear¬ 
liest years for these mysterious revelations, our little 
Sister, before reaching the end of her short career, 
may justly express her gratitude in rendering the 
following testimony of herself : 

“ O my God ! bless me, notwithstanding my un- 
worthiness, because I have done what Thou hast 
commanded me ; deign also, in Thy great Mercy, to 
pardon my faults, for when I think of these words, 
‘Much shall be required of him to whom much has 
been given/ I fear the sovereign rigor of Thy Jus¬ 
tice. Yet, O my God, two thoughts console me 
amidst the fears of Thy Judgment,—first, that 
Thou hast given me the grace to walk in Thy ways 
with a spirit of uprightness and simplicity, and 
always under the radiant star of holy obedience; 
and secondly, that Thou didst answer my petitions, 
when I besought Thee never to let Thy gifts be to 
me the occasion of vain-glory. Yes, Lord, unto the 
end of my life will I say, to Thee alone belong all 
honor, praise and glory; to me, a miserable sinner, 
only shame, contempt and confusion ! 

“ I give Thee a thousand thanks, O my God, for 
having bestowed upon Thy unworthy servant the 
two great gifts of Thy Adorable Face, and the vir- 
32 


374 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


ginal bosom of Thy August Mother, whence I might 
imbibe the mysterious milk of grace and mercy. 
Both have ravished my heart. O amiable Jesus, 
whither shall I turn ? I behold, on the one side, 
the Adorable Face of my Divine Saviour, whence 
flows the Precious Blood that assures me of Eternal 
Life, and on the other, the Maternal bosom of Mary 
yielding a mysterious milk, sweet to my taste as the 
manna of old, and filling my soul with confidence 
in the infinite mercies, of which the Immaculate 
Virgin is the channel ! O blessed Angels, and all 
ye Saints of Heaven, assist me in thanking Jesus 
and Mary, Who have covered me with benefits dur¬ 
ing life, and bring me to Heaven, that I may, 
though most unworthy, sing with yourselves the 
eternal hymns of grateful praise, for all God’s 
graces, especially the Work of the Reparation which 
His Infinite Mercy has established in France. 

“ O good Jesus, bless and protect the Arch-con¬ 
fraternity of the Reparation. I deposit it in Thy 
Sacred Heart; and in Thy Mother’s Immaculate 
Heart; be Ye ever its powerful protectors!” Sit 
Nomen Domini benedictum. Vade retro Satana. 

She ends the foregoing “ relation ” by the follow¬ 
ing prayer to the Infant Jesus, on the anniversary 
of His Blessed Birth. 

“ O most holy and amiable Infant Jesus, I give 
Thee thanks for having assisted me to write this 
little record, for Thy honor and the greater glory of 
Thy holy Mother. I lay it- at Thy Blessed Feet, 
on this memorable day of Thy august Birth, and 
most humbly supplicate Thee to take, on this beau- 


MERCY. 


375 


tiful Feast, a new hold upon my soul. Unto the 
end of my life, do I wish to be Thy little shepherdess, 
watching over Thy sheep ; and Thy little servant, 
ministering to Thee and Thy holy Mother. Yes, 
O Divine Infant Jesus, Heavenly Spouse of my 
soul, I renounce to Thee all that I am, and I give 
myself to all that Thou art ; do Thou sovereignly 
possess my soul ! Amen. 

Sister Marie de Saint-Pierre 
of the Holy Family, 

Unworthy Carmelite . 
Christmas Day, December 25, 1847. 

“ Glory be to God and peace to men of good will ! ” 


CHAPTER XXI. 


THE SECRETARY^ COLLOQUY. 

“ You are nigh the goal of your pilgrimage !... The end of 
the combat approaches ! . . . You will soon behold My Face 
in Heaven ! ” . . . ( Our Lord's Words.) 

The canonical erection of the Arch-Confraternity of 
the Reparation had filled Bister Saint-Pierre with 
joy. “Yet, my heart,” said she, “is not entirely 
satisfied, for the Church of Tours, the inheritance of 
the great St. Martin, still remains barren in regard 
to the Work. When will it bring forth the fruit 
which has been conceived in its bosom ? Shall we 
be obliged to repeat the words of the Gospel, ‘ Lord, 
we have done all Thou hast commanded, and we are 
unprofitable servants ? 9 99 An experiment in this 
direction was now about to be made. On the 11th 
of November, Feast of St. Martin, the daughter of 
Carmel felt that impulse of grace which, to use her 
own words, “was for me the signal of combat. Our 
Lord, having for six months filled my soul with 
ineffable delights, has commissioned me anew with 
the Work of the Reparation.” The following Sun¬ 
day, November 14, on which day the Feast of the 
Thaumaturgus was celebrated with great solemnity 
at Tours, she was strongly, almost irresistibly urged 
376 ‘ 


THE SECRETARY^ COLLOQUY. 377 

to approach the Archbishop again on the subject. 
“But, oh!” she exclaims, “ impenetrable judgments 
of God, which we must silently adore ; all our en¬ 
deavors have been in vain ! ” She adds, “ Yet, I 
do not feel discouraged, for the most Blessed Virgin 
has inspired me to believe that a Work so necessary 
to France will, in time, extend to all the cities of 
the kingdom, and that in consideration of its estab¬ 
lishment, she would pour out upon us ‘ the milk of 
mercy.’ The Infant Jesus, on His part, has like¬ 
wise promised me, that if propagated according to 
His desires, He would give to France the kiss of 
peace and reconciliation. On another occasion, the 
most Blessed Virgin recommended to me this new 
Confraternity, which now approved by the Church 
and enriched with precious favors, appears even the 
more beautiful in her eyes. She seemed to have 
great joy on seeing its establishment, especially as 
this had been the motive inclining her to plead with 
her Son in behalf of France.” 

The future of her dear country was ever before this 
servant of God, wherefore, she never ceased praying 
for it. December 2, our Lord appeared to her cov¬ 
ered with wounds, and made her hear these sad 
words: “ The Jews crucified Me on Friday, but 
Christians crucify Me on Sunday. Ask then, in My 
Name, the establishment of the Work of the Repar¬ 
ation in the diocese of Tours, that thus My friends 
may embalm My wounds by pious expiations, and 
obtain Mercy for the guilty. My daughter, the 
storm is already rumbling, but I shall keep my 
promise, if My wishes on this point be respected and 
32* 


378 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


acted upon. . . . Speak with humility, but at the 
same time, with a holy freedom.”. 

This communication also, being made known to 
Mgr. Morlot, he was consequently apprised of the 
approaching storm, and warned that the time for 
averting its consequences was very short. 

January 4, the Sister received an encouragement 
all the sweeter for being unexpected. Let us listen 
to her own account of this joyful event : “ Our holy 
Mother Teresa has appeared to me in the interior of 
my soul, having been deputed by God to combat 
the enemies of the Work of the Reparation, which 
the demon is doing his utmost to annihilate. She 
has told me,, that this Work will be the honor of 
Carmel, and that it is in every way conformable to 
the spirit of our holy vocation, whose sole aim is 
the glory of God and the needs of the Church, 
wherefore, she has urged me to devote myself to it 
with unremitting fervor. Afterwards, she recom¬ 
mended to me the practice of obedience, making 
known to me, that Jesus operated miracles for 
obedient souls, and that she herself had always sub¬ 
mitted to obedience, her celestial communications. 
She also made me understand, with what fidelity I 
must acquit myself of all my religious observances, 
the least of them being very agreeable to the Lord, 
and calculated to enrich my soul with merits. 
Finally, it was revealed to me, that God had de¬ 
puted our holy Mother Teresa to be a powerful 
protectress of the Work, and a most sweet consola¬ 
tion to me in my trials. Since then, I have felt my 
soul closely united to this great Saint, this model of 
zeal for the glory of the Most High. She will sup- 


THE SECRETARY’S COLLOQUY. 379 

port my weakness, she will assist me to walk in this 
thorny path.” 

The “ storm ” of which our Lord had warned her 
was rumbling in the distance. Two months later, 
it was to burst forth in all its fury. This the 
Divine Master clearly announces to His pious ser¬ 
vant, in a communication of the 13th of February. 

“During my evening prayer,” says she, “our 
Lord made me feel that it was His Will to com¬ 
municate something to me. Fearing illusion, I 
several times resisted the inspiration, but at last, 
Jesus having gathered the powers of my soul into 
His Divine Heart, bade me remember that as I had 
given myself entirely to Him, to labor for the 
accomplishment of His designs, He now willed to 
confide to me a new mission. Soon, He made 
known to me in these words, the terrible woes im¬ 
pending over us : ‘ The Church is threatened by a 
fearful tempest* pray , pray ! 1 ... . He had al¬ 
ready given me this knowledge at different times, 
but never in so forcible a manner ; it is impossible 
to describe the touching and impressive accents with 
which this charitable Saviour said to me, ‘ Pray, 
pray ! ’ . . . He has taught me the prayer I must 
use to protect His Church by the virtue of the most 
Holy Name of God,—the one He Himself, ere leav¬ 
ing earth, offered His Eternal Father, for His 
Apostles and all the Church: ‘Holy Father, keep 
them in Thy Name, whom Thou hast given me.’ 

* This prediction, let us not fail to remark, was realized that 
same year, 1843, in both France and Italy, especially at Rome, 
the Holy Father, Pius IX, being obliged to leave the Eternal 
City and take refuge at Gaëta. 


380 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


“This prayer is more efficacious than any I 
might compose of myself ; and, as, in His Mercy, 
He has chosen me for an instrument to promote the 
glory of God’s Holy Name, I am, in a manner, en¬ 
titled to ask forgiveness through the virtue of that 
Holy Name, which is ever the Church’s refuge. 
Acknowledging my nothingness, I submitted my 
will to His. Then, this adorable Saviour made me 
understand that His Justice was .greatly irritated 
against mankind .for its sins, but especially those 
directly outraging the Majesty of God. At this 
moment, I beheld our Lord in the Most Blessed 
Sacrament, and the prayers of the just restraining 
the arm of Divine Justice. 

“ Our Lord also recommended me to pray for the 
Sovereign Pontiff. Once it seemed to me, I saw a 
black smoke which arose towards Heaven, but did 
not obscure the sun, which latter circumstance some¬ 
what consoled me, for the sun represents the Church, 
and this smoke its enemies. Jesus also said to me, 
‘What you are now going to experience in your 
soul will prove, whether or not it is I Who have 
spoken to you.’ Soon, my heart becoming as though 
transpierced by a sword of sorrow, I began my mis¬ 
sion of prayer, repeating ‘ Holy Father, keep the 
Church of Jesus Christ in virtue of Thy salutary 
Name,’—this the last testament of Thy Well- 
beloved Son, is His ardent desire. Remember Thou 
the prayer His love prompted Him to offer, on the 
last night of His life, for the Church our Mother, 
‘Holy Father , keep them in Thy Name , whom Thou 
hast given me. . . . While I was with them, I kept 
them in Thy Name /’ . . . ‘Most Holy Name of 


THE SECRETARY^ COLLOQUY. 381 

God, refuge of the Church and of France, have 
mercy on us, save us ! ' . . . 

“On Sunday, February 20, having offered Holy 
Communion in reparation for the outrages against 
the Divine Majesty, it was made known to my soul, 
by an interior light, that the crisis was near at hand ! 
Guilty France was about to be chastised ! I seemed 
to hear these words, ‘ The Lord has strung His bow. 
He is about to discharge His arrows !' Beholding 
Him so shamefully outraged, I could not forbear 
entering into the designs of His Justice, and I 
answered, ‘ Strike, O Lord !' For I longed for the 
vindication of God's glory, and, moreover, I saw 
that the stroke would not be mortal. Yet, though 
praying the Most High to strike and avenge His 
glory, I also supplicated Him to strike as a Father 
and not as an irritated Judge. I comprehend that 
this scandal (if I may thus express myself,) must 
needs be. Let us adore the Divine Justice and in¬ 
voke its Mercy. For more than four years, had the 
arm of the Lord been raised over our guilty heads ! " 

. . . The hour of impending woes had indeed 
arrived. An unexpected revolution took place in 
Paris, the shock of which was felt throughout 
Europe, and Louis Philippe, who for eighteen years, 
had believed himself firmly seated upon his throne, 
was constrained, with all his family, to seek safety 
in exile. However, the Church at this time, amidst 
all these outbursts of civil discord, was not only not 
directly persecuted, but even treated with respect, at 
least, in France. 

It is later and by circuitous ways, the secret agents 
of impiety strive to oppress her. 


382 LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 

On the 26th of February, after Holy Communion, 
our Carmelite was greatly consoled by hearing in¬ 
teriorly these words of our Lord in reference to the 
Community, 11 Fear not, little flock, your fold is in 
My Name. I hold you all hidden in My Heart ; 
no harm shall reach you ; My hands are all-power¬ 
ful, and I will not suffer you to be torn from My 
bosom.” 

“ Yes,” exclaims the pious nun, “ the Lord will 
recognize those who have invoked His Holy Name. 
That adorable Name is an impregnable rampart; 
and it protects our House, because its members are 
united by the bonds of charity. Our Lord has also 
made me understand that the clergy would be spared. 
Doubtless, they will be harrassed and annoyed, but 
they will not be openly persecuted; the blood of 
priests will not flow as in 1793, ‘ because/ said our 
Lord to me, ‘ I have not had cause to complain of 
the clergy, as I had at that unhappy period/ Yes, 
I am confident that the Church of France will be 
protected through the virtue of the most Holy Name 
of God. ‘Holy Father , keep them in Thy Name 
whom Thou hast given Me! 9 Behold the Divine 
prayer which we must needs repeat incessantly, in 
union with our Lord Jesus Christ, for the Holy 
Church. 

“ Permit me, my Reverend Mother, to remind you 
of the words of Jesus to me, after Holy Communion, 
on the Feast of our Blessed Mother, the 21st of last 
November,—words which caused my tears to flow. 
He was speaking to me at the time of the Work of 
the Reparation, and added, ‘ Imagine the state of 
things in France, when My powerful arm shakes 


THE SECRETARY’S COLLOQUY. 383 

this throne, and I overthrow him who is now seated 
thereon ! ’ You can readily understand that I had 
cause to feel afflicted at thoughts of such an impend¬ 
ing calamity ! Alas ! the hour of avenging justice 
has indeed come, and in the twinkling of an eye, He 
hath accomplished what He foretold ! I adore thee, 
Justice of my God, and I invoke Thy Mercy, O 
Lord ! ” 

The Sister felt urged to invoke that Mercy with 
new ardor. Let us listen to her cries of anguish : 
“ My soul is in a most painful state, and I must open 
my heart to relieve its oppression. I reflect on our 
Lord’s predictions to me, and I say : ‘ Behold, they 
will all soon be realized ! ’ My God ! have I not 
cause to tremble at thoughts of being charged with 
such a mission, especially, when I recall these terrible 
words in which Thou didst address me: ‘ If, through 
your fault, My designs fail of accomplishment, I 
will demand of you an account of blood and souls ? ’ 

“ Several years ago, I said, it is true, that a Work of 
Reparation in our country would arrest the arm of 
God’s ire raised over us, and would be to France the 
rainbow of mercy in her sky, that this was the 
peace-offering God demanded of us. Happily, the 
Work has indeed been inaugurated, and begins to 
make its influence felt, but it is yet too feeble to stay 
the Divine wrath. Ah ! were it but extended to 
every diocese, my anxiety and fears would vanish, 
for God is faithful to His promises. For some time 
past, I have been praying this good Master to give 
Monseigneur a sign of my mission, which might im¬ 
pel him irresistibly to some active steps towards the 
Work of the Reparation. I have simply laid before 


384 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


Him, to Whom nothing is impossible, His Grace’s 
attitude herein, and supplicated Him to give him a 
proof of His Will. ‘ Lord/ I entreated, ‘give him a 
sign, but a sign that all France may witness, Lord , 
give him this great sign ! 9 . 

“Our Lord, seeing that I offered this prayer 
solely for the glory of His Name and the fulfilment 
of His Will, deigned to hear me ; and, on the 13th 
of February, I was favored with that other vision of 
which I have already spoken to you, the confirma¬ 
tion of what I had announced to Monseigneur, in 
the communication of the 2nd of December. The 
Divine Master, on the former occasion, told me to 
make known to His Grace the approach of the 
storm, that its rumblings were now heard in the dis¬ 
tance, and that the last moment for action had ar¬ 
rived. February 13,1 beheld, as it were, the begin¬ 
ning of the fulfilment of these words, the foe, under 
the emblem of a black smoke, rising towards Heaven, 
but not obscuring the sun of the Church, because 
the Church of France had already invoked the 
Holy Name of God, which was to be her refuge 
during the tempest. The Lord has told me, that in 
consequence of His newly established Work, the 
nation (France) which was to have been almost con¬ 
sumed in His wrath, would now be but scathed by 
its terrible flames. And He has fulfilled all His 
promises to me ; yes, He has protected His Church 
by the virtue of His salutary Name ; before letting 
fall the great stroke of His Justiee, He has said : 

‘ Holy Father , keep them in Thy Name whom Thou 
hast given Me! 9 Wherefore, did the wicked respect 
those who were His. Oh ! how I long to make 


THE SECRETARY’S COLLOQUY. 385 

known to all Bishops the consoling truth that the 
most Holy Name of God is the refuge of the Church 
of France, and entreat them to establish the Work 
of the Reparation. I again repeat what I have 
always said : It is the Work of the Reparation that 
will disarm God's Justice, and save France! Happy 
they who know how to profit by this means of sal¬ 
vation !” 

Though she may not speak to all the Bishops in 
the world, it is at least fitting that she be heard by 
the Prelate, who several years previously, when her 
first communications were submitted to him, had 
declared his conviction of their truthfulness and 
Divine origin. March 3, she thus addresses the 
Mother Prioress : 

“ I hasten on leaving the choir after thanksgiv¬ 
ing, to write you the account of what our Lord has 
just made known to me at Holy Communion ; 
First, it is His express Will that I speak to His 
Grace the Archbishop or to his Secretary, and 
acquaint either of them with our Lord’s communi¬ 
cations to me, during the last four years and a half. 
This good Master assures me that He will put the 
words in my mouth. ‘ I still have the rod in 
hand,’ He adds, ‘ the rod of My Justice, and if they 
wish to snatch it from me, let them replace it by 
the Work of the Reparation. As to yourself, be 
faithful in fulfilling your mission, and regard it as 
an honor to have been thus deputed to manifest My 
Will. Should you prove unfaithful to My voice, 
you would expose yourself to feel the strokes of 
that rod. Do your utmost to snatch it from My 
hands.’ 


33 


386 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


“ This, my most Reverend Mother, is, as nearly 
as I can express it, what Jesus has communicated to 
me. He also desires me to continue reciting this 
prayer in union with Him : 1 Holy Father , keep 
them in Thy Name , whom Thou hast given Me ! ’ 

“ According to what He has revealed to me, it is 
He who says it in me, and I in Him. Oh ! what 
tenderness He has for His Church, so great that it 
would seem as if she were His only thought ! It is 
His Will to save her, to hide her in the Adorable 
Name of His Divine Father. If the Church of 
France could speak, she would cry aloud for the 
Work of the Reparation. I ask it in her name, 
for, it is her rampart against the attacks of her 
enemies. 

“My Reverend Mother, in order to obey the 
Divine Master, I most humbly pray you to solicit 
for me, a visit from Monseigneur ; or, in case His 
Grace be too much engaged, that he will be so kind 
as to send me his Secretary, through whom I could 
transmit the communications I have been commis¬ 
sioned to deliver to my Bishop.” 

This request was made known to Mgr. Morlot, 
also, the object of the desired interview ;—namely, 
the erection at Tours, of a Confraternity affiliated to 
the one at Langres. The Prelate having sent the 
Secretary-General of the Arch-diocese, the Rever¬ 
end Abbé Vincent to the Carmelite Convent, the 
following conversation took place between himself 
and Marie de Saint-Pierre. 

We here quote literally the account written by 
herself : 


THE SECRETARY’S COLLOQUY. 387 

“ My Reverend Mother, I am going to give you 
a brief sketch of my little debate with the Secretary 
of His Grace, the Archbishop, on the subject of the 
Work of the Reparation. I assure you our Lord 
assisted me as He had promised, for I was neither 
uneasy nor intimidated, and I spoke with the great¬ 
est facility. As nearly as I can give it, the follow¬ 
ing is the account of our Conference : 

“ The Secretary .—‘ Sister, I came in the name of 
Monseigneur, to say to you, that He has shown 
your letters to the members of his Council, and 
they unanimously pronounced against the establish¬ 
ment of the Work you ask. His Grace has most 
carefully examined this affair, he has prayed for 
guidance, and it is impossible for him to approve it 
in his official capacity, as there is nothing to attest 
the validity of your mission.’ 

(( Sister Saint-Pierre .—‘ Reverend Sir, I do not 
pretend to importune Monseigneur anew on this 
point, or to argue concerning my sentiments rela¬ 
tive to the mission which I believe has been im¬ 
posed on me by our Lord, for the salvation of 
France. My intention herein has been only to 
comply with the promptings of conscience. When 
I had the honor to speak to His Grace of the com¬ 
munications I thought I received from God, he 
answered me thus, “ My child, do not be disturbed, 
lest this be an illusion ; it is not so in my opinion, 
I recognize here the seal of God.” Reverend Sir, it 
is these words which I received'as coming from the 
Holy Spirit, that have made me persevere in my 
mission.’ 


388 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


“ The Secretary. —‘ My good Sister, His Grace 
said this to you at that time, not knowing how far 
the matter would go. Since then, he has carefully 
examined it, he has prayed, and he has decided in 
the negative/ 

“ Sister Saint-Pierre. —‘ This is sufficient for me. 
I wished only to know His Grace’s decision. My 
conscience urged me to make these advances towards 
the establishment of the Work of the Reparation ; 
and now having done so, I am perfectly at peace. 
And I would say to you, that my reason for desir¬ 
ing to speak to Monseigneur was to disburden my¬ 
self of my mission. Therefore, since you are his 
representative, I now as an act of religion, lay my 
mission at the feet of the ecclesiastical authority, 
with whom will rest the responsibility before God. ” 
“ The Secretary .—‘ But, my good Sister, the As¬ 
sociation of which you speak is already established ! ’ 
“Sister Saint-Pierre. —‘Yes, Reverend Sir, but 
the Church of Tours should be its depository. I 
solicited this of Monseigneur, but as he did not 
judge proper to establish it, I submitted ; and what 
proves that it is really in conformity to the Will of 
God, is the fact, that in spite of all this, it was 
established, although I had no part in it.’ 

“ The Secretary. —‘It has many members here, 
and has not His Grace approved a small book of 
prayers belonging to it ? ’ 

“ Sister Saint-Pierre. —‘ Very true, Reverend Sir, 
but it is necessary that there be a canonically erected 
Association at Tours. The Work has need of the 
cooperation and protection of His Grace, the Arch- 


THE SECRETARY’S COLLOQUY. 389 

bishop. All eyes are fixed upon him, because it is 
in his diocese the Work was conceived.’ 

“ The Secretary .—‘ Sister, I tell you in all confi¬ 
dence, that this Work established at Langres is not 
progressing so favorably; and it lias excited the 
comments of the press.’ 

“ Sister Saint-Pierre .—‘ Reverend Sir, I am not 
at all astonished, for our Lord has told me that the 
demon would do his utmost to annihilate the Work. 
AVas it not thus with the devotion of the Sacred 
Heart of Jesus, and the institution of the Feast of 
the Blessed Sacrament ? Though the Saviour, it is 
true, entrusted such missions to worthier souls than 
I, yet they were persecuted.’ 

“ The Secretary .—‘ Sister, all God’s works excite 
contradiction and persecution, for instance, the Arch- 
confraternity of the Sacred Heart of Mary. This is 
a beautiful AVork including all, for its object is to 
convèrt sinners ! ’ 

“Sister Saint-Pierre .—Reverend Sir, our Lord 
was aware of its existence when He asked through 
me for another Confraternity, and He has made 
known to me, that this first was not sufficient ; for, 
to obtain the pardon of one we have offended, we 
must make some reparation, and the Lord has made 
me understand, that it is the transgression of the 
First Three Commandments especially, which have 
excited His ire against France. Therefore, Rever¬ 
end Sir, since both the secular and ecclesiastical 
arm have been powerless to prevent these disorders, 
we must, at least, make reparation to God for 
them:’ * 

33 * 


390 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


“ The Secretary. —‘ Ah ! my good Sister, here is 
the point in question ; you say God exacts this, but 
we are not sure of it ; you may be mistaken/ 

“ Sister Saint-Pierre. —‘ Reverend sir, this suppo¬ 
sition is not impossible, yet I am loth to believe that 
a delusion could have lasted five years, as this has, 
uninfluenced by any one ; for my Superiors, in their 
wisdom, did not encourage me. They even forbade 
me to think about it, and were unwilling to decide 
the case. The Reverend Father Superior has 
already referred these things to the judgment of His 
Grace/ 

“ The Secretary. —‘ Well, then, my good Sister, be 
perfectly at peace ; you have done your duty in mak¬ 
ing known these communications to His Grace. 
Now, I say to you in his name, think no more of all 
this, banish it entirely from your mind/ 

“ Sister Saint-Pierre. —‘ Reverend sir, Monseigneur 
certainly does not forbid me asking of God the ful¬ 
filment of His designs ? * 

“ The Secretary. —‘No, but let it be without re¬ 
questing the Work/ 

“ Sister Saint-Pierre. —‘Reverend sir, I beg you to 
assure Monseigneur of my obedience to his com¬ 
mands/ ’ 

The Sister was faithful to her promise, for a few 
days afterwards she wrote : 

“ Our Lord has entirely disengaged me from the 
desire of seeing the Work of the Reparation estab¬ 
lished in the diocese of Tours. Were but a single 
word from me necessary to bring about its erection, 
I would not say it, and this through obedience to the 
ecclesiastical authority, ever the object of my unfail- 


THE SECRETARY’S COLLOQUY. 391 

ing respect. Yet, though somewhat grieved by this 
last refusal, our Lord has, indeed, known how to 
console me, notwithstanding my unworthiness, for 
He has made me understand that His Work 
must needs become flourishing, growing only the 
stronger and more vigorous in the midst of storms, 
and that like a ship refused harbor at one port, it 
would happily land at another. This last promise, 
as we have since learned, was realized two days 
after, the Work of the Reparation being established 
at Lyons, just at this time, and under the most 
promising auspices.’ 

As if to receive some compensation from His ser¬ 
vant for this, the Divine Master applied her anew, 
and with greater intensity than ever, to the contem¬ 
plation of His Holy Face, urging her to never cease 
offering It to the Heavenly Father. 

“ Nothing,” says she, “ is a more efficacious 
means of disarming His irritated Justice, than to 
offer Him this Holy Face, that has taken upon Its 
Head the thorns of our sins, and has set Itself as -a 
rock* under the strokes of that same Justice. It 
has cancelled our debts, It is our security ; where¬ 
fore our amiable Saviour has commanded me, not¬ 
withstanding my unworthiness, to keep myself con¬ 
stantly before the throne of His Father, offering Him 
this Divine Face, the object of His complacency. 

“ This tender Saviour has made me the following 
consoling promise : < Every time you offer My Face 

* Expression the Prophet Isaias puts in our Lord’s mouth: "I 
have not turned away My Face from them that rebuke Me and 

spit upon Me. Therefore, have I set My Face as a most 

hard rock, . . . ( Isaias , Chap. L., 6, 7.) 


392 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


to My Father, I will open My Mouth to demand 
mercy/ Our good Jesus has also promised me to 
have pity on France. Hence, let us have confi¬ 
dence ; His all-powerful Name will be our buckler, 
and His Adorable Face our Divine rampart. He 
has also made me understand that He wished this 
devotion to His Adorable Face most zealously pro¬ 
pagated. O good Jesus! hide us in the secret of 
Thy Holy Face, that It may be for us an impreg¬ 
nable tower, a fortress against the attacks of our 
enemies.” 

After Holy Communion, our Lord appeared in the 
interior of her soul, as He is represented in the 
Ecce Homo. “ He at first fixed my attention,” says 
she, “upon the contemplation of His Holy Face, 
but very soon, He directed it to the reed in His 
Hand, presenting it to me as a gift wherewith to 
combat the enemies of the Church, promising me, at 
the same time, that they would feel my strokes. He 
also made me understand that this feeble reed was 
the figure of my soul. Yes, I am only a feeble 
reed, but in the hand of Jesus Christ, my Spouse, 
becoming most powerful against His adversaries, I 
shall say with Faith and confidence, ‘O malice of 
the demon, vanish before the reed of Jesus Christ ! * 
In the name of the Lord, I can, like the youthful 
David, crush Goliath to the earth with my staff and 
the angular stone,—I mean the Adorable Face of our 
Lord Jesus Christ.” 

Nothing is more conformable to Holy Scripture 
than this simile of the “ rock ” as applied to “ the 
Face” of Christ. As we have already remarked, 
the expression is that of the Prophet Isaias. St. 


THE SECRETARY^ COLLOQUY. 393 

Paul also says, “that Christ is the rock by excel¬ 
lence.” And the Prince of the Apostles, in his 
Epistles, by a comparison not unfamiliar to him, 
calls our Lord the “ corner-stone,” and predicts that 
the “shock” of this “rock” will be fatal to God’s 
enemies. This was likewise the idea apparently in 
our Sister’s mind.—She adds, “Such, my most Rev¬ 
erend Mother, are the sentiments with which our 
Lord has inspired me. Eternal Father, I offer 
Thee the most Holy Face of Jesus ; It is the mys¬ 
terious coin of Infinite value which alone can cancel 
our debts. Eternal Father, I offer Thee the most 
Holy Face of Jesus to appease Thy anger; remem¬ 
ber, It has borne the thorns of our sins, and has set 
Itself as a rôck under the blows of Thy Justice, 
whose impression it still bears. Behold those 
Divine Wounds of whose voice I desire to be the 
echo : they are ever crying, ‘ Mercy, mercy, mercy 
for sinners ! ’ ” 

Again, March 30, 1848, she received Holy Com¬ 
munion with the intention of honoring the most 
Holy Face of our Saviour, and assuaging His dol¬ 
orous wounds, supplicating Him to imprint that 
Adorable Face indelibly upon her heart. “ Before 
Holy Communion,” says she, “I was enlightened 
interiorly to understand that the Church is the Face 
of the Mystical Body of Jesus Christ, now covered 
with wounds by the impious ! Then, I felt inspired 
to offer our Lord the virginal milk of His Holy 
Mother, as a precious and agreeable balm to the 
wounds of His most Holy Face; and my soul 
experienced great joy in performing this exercise of 
love and simplicity. 


394 LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 

“ After Holy Communion, the Divine Saviour 
willed in His infinite goodness to make known to 
me that this exercise had been most pleasing to Him, 
and that I should continue it; also, that in return 
He would make me taste the milk of His Divine 
consolation, in alleviation of my own sorrows. I 
now seemed to behold this tender Saviour radiant in 
glory, and my whole being became inebriated with 
joy. Soon, He made me hear these sweet and con¬ 
soling words: i You are nigh the goal of your pil¬ 
grimage !... The end of the combat approaches ! 
... You will soon behold My Face in Heaven ! 1 
... At these words, I bowed my face to the earth, 
saying, ‘ Lord, I merit Hell ! , The good Master 
answered : ‘ I have applied to your soul the virtue of 
My Face, to restore in you the image of God. They, 
who on earth contemplate the wounds of My Face, 
shall, one day in Heaven, contemplate It radiant with 
glory ! ’ At that moment, most Reverend Mother, 
I was upon Thabor, and, like the Apostle St. Peter, 
fain would I have said : ‘ Lord, it is good to be 
here; let us make three tabernacles for the three 
powers of my soul, that it may ever enjoy this sweet 
rest, infinitely surpassing all the joys of earth/ But 
our Divine Saviour then made me understand that 
His true Spouses should prefer the heat of battle to 
the rest of contemplation, and that they must not 
shrink from casting themselves into the conflict to 
defend His glory. I told Him I was going to com¬ 
bat the enemies of His Church with the instruments 
of His Passion, and I saw that my design was pleas¬ 
ing to Him. 


THE SECRETARY’S COLLOQUY. 395 

“ This is the substance of what has taken place in 
this communication ; I say the substance, because it 
is hardly possible to express literally those interior 
words, and still less so to depict what the soul expe¬ 
riences at such times. How despicable all creatures 
seem, and how unworthy of engrossing our hearts! 
Eternal Father, I offer Thee the most Holy Face of 
Jesus to appease Thy anger ! Behold His wounds, 
His humiliations ! They are the worthy atonement 
of our crimes, and the glory of Thy Holy Name! 
Eternal Father, I offer Thee the most Holy Face of 
Jesus to cancel our debts! It is the infinitely 
precious coin, stamped with the effigy of the King 
of Kings.” 

We have now reached the last communication our 
dear Sister wrote. As had been revealed to her, she 
was approaching the end of her pilgrimage. 

The letter containing this communication is dated 
April 12,1848, and, like all the others, is addressed 
to the Mother Prioress, Mother Marie of the Incar¬ 
nation. 

It takes us back to the Mystery of the Holy In¬ 
fancy, whence the innocent and candid soul of this 
humble virgin had never wandered far. It is quite 
brief; and bears the same seal of simplicity as all 
the others. We shall transcribe it entire, and not 
without emotions of piety and veneration, which 
doubtless our readers will share : 

“ For the past few days,” says she, “ I have found 
myself attracted anew to the Holy Infancy of the 
Incarnate Word. You know my soul is wedded to 
this Mystery. From time to time, our Lord has led 
me to the contemplation of the other Mysteries of 


396 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


His Holy Life, but the stable of Bethlehem is ever 
the resting-place of my soul. 

“ Last Sunday, the Saviour made me understand 
that many pious souls meditated on the humiliations 
of His Passion, but few on those of His Holy In¬ 
fancy, and it was these He desired me to consider, 
that I might combat the spirit of pride, ambition 
and independence, by the humiliations and poverty 
of His crib, and the captivity of His swaddling- 
clothes. Hence, the Face of the little Jesus, alone 
in His crib and covered with tears for our sins, 
I perceive to be no less agreeable to the Eternal 
Father, than the Face of Jesus, covered with blood 
and abandoned upon the Cross. He is our august 
Victim, both in the crib and upon the Cross. There¬ 
fore, do I offer this Divine Babe to the Eternal 
Father, interposing Him between Heaven and earth 
to appease the Father’s wrath. The Holy Spirit 
likewise attracts me to the contemplation of Jesus 
taking the virginal milk of His Blessed Mother. 
Yesterday, towards the end of my prayer, the most 
Blessed Virgin, notwithstanding my unworthiness, 
deigned to reveal herself to me, telling me she was 
the Queen of Carmel, that she would protect her 
Houses in the days of calamity, and that we must 
have great confidence in her and her Divine Son. 
She has also made me understand that it was neces¬ 
sary to labor with zeal for the end of our Institute, 
that is, to pray fervently for the Church, and do 
violence to Heaven in its behalf. This tender 
Mother desired me to say, in honor of her Divine 
Maternity, the hymn, 0 Gloriosa Virginum , as many 
times as there are convents of our Order in France, 


THE SECRETARY’S COLLOQUY. 397 

promising me that she would sprinkle these flowers 
of Carmel with her virginal milk, the emblem of 
mercy. 

“She has also told me, that in proportion as God’s 
army (the defenders of His Name) increased in num¬ 
bers, so would that of Satan (the enemies of the 
Church and of the State) decrease. 

“ This, my most Reverend Mother, is, as nearly 
as I can tell you, what has passed in my soul. I 
have recited seventy-two times, in honor of the years 
of her blessed life, the hymn indicated by Mary, and 
I have besought St. Joseph, our good Father, and 
St. Teresa, our holy Mother, to offer them to the 
Queen of Carmel for the salvation of our dear 
Houses. 

“O holy Mary, sprinkle the flowers of Carmel 
with thy mysterious milk, that they may thus be¬ 
come so strongly rooted in this land of benediction, 
as never to be eradicated by the demon.” 

“ Sister Marie Saint-Pierre, 
of the Holy Family, 

Unworthy Carmelite .” 

In recommending “ the flowers of Carmel ” to the 
Blessed Virgin, the good Sister was inspired by the 
purest sentiments of gratitude for the “ blessed land,” 
where she had passed the last nine years of her life 
—years filled with innumerable graces and benedic¬ 
tions. How could the Blessed Mother of the In¬ 
fant Jesus fail to hear and answer a prayer so worthy 
of her maternal Heart ! 


34 


CHAPTEÎt XXII. 


HER VIRTUES. 

“ It is my consolation in the hour of death, that I have always 
been obedient.” ( The Sister's Words.) 

At this point in our dear Sister’s life, before giving 
the details of the illness which was to end her brief 
career, we deem it neither out of place nor uninter¬ 
esting to our readers to retrace the picture of her 
virtues, and to sketch the outlines of her religious 
life. We shall thus collect some few traits, which had 
otherwise escaped us, to which we purpose adding 
those furnished us by the personal souvenirs of her 
companions in religion. However, our readers must 
not expect any of those remarkable events attendant 
upon some holy souls, and of a nature so manifestly 
supernatural as to excite our curiosity. 

As we have already said, the exterior life of this 
servant of God was very simple and ordinary, so 
much so, that it was necessary, we have been told, for 
one to be a very close observer to discover in her 
the least sign of those marvels of grace, with which 
the Holy Ghost had favored her. 

Though apparently insignificant and unimportant, 
the details, we are about to present will serve, never¬ 
theless, their purpose, that of gracefully enframing, 
398 


HER VIRTUES. 


399 


as it were, this holy life, and setting forth its char¬ 
acteristics in such a way that pious souls, we trust, 
and even others, will find therein both pleasure and 
edification. And may an attentive perusal of this 
book inspire increased appreciation of the priceless 
treasure God committed to Marie de Saint-Pierre ! 

We will speak first of her physical appearance, of 
that mirror of the soul she has so faithfully and 
aptly portrayed, in the profound Mystery of the 
Holy Face of the Saviour. 

In her writings she calls herself “ the little Bre¬ 
tonne,” but she was really of medium height. Her 
face, at first sight, struck one as rather unattractive, 
by reason of the irregularity of her features,—her 
narrow forehead, protruding mouth, very small eyes 
and nose ; but these defects were overbalanced by a 
a fresh, blooming complexion, and a sweet, calm 
expression, which revealed the hidden beauty of her 
soul. Her look was prepossessing and modest ; her 
bearing serious, indicating a mind ever absorbed in 
lofty contemplation—that of God and His glory. 
Her voice, which was strong and melodious, ren¬ 
dered her a most valuable assistant to the Choir- 
nuns, among whom she had been admitted. She also 
made herself very useful by her skill, taste and assi¬ 
duity in needlework. 

As we have said, her literary education was quite 
limited; but her natural abilities were above the 
average, and ofttimes, when called upon to express 
the sublime and delicate supernatural ideas commun¬ 
icated to her, she unconsciously displays not only a 
graceful, harmonious style, but a certain poetic in¬ 
stinct, and a wonderfully clear conception of these 


400 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


ideas. When she writes, images flow from her pen, 
and though several may have been revealed to her 
in these divine communications, there are always 
some to be found evidently begotten of her own 
natural faculties. It was also thus when she had 
occasion to speak of these matters, which she always 
did with a composure and simplicity equalled only 
by her humility and modesty. 

Her intelligence, like her heart, aspired to advance 
in the science of the Saints; that science whose 
object is God,—God, in the knowledge of Whom it 
desires continually to increase, that it may love Him 
the more and serve Him the better. She was gifted 
with an excellent judgment and a solid, well-balanced 
mind ; hence, her imagination was easily controlled, 
and, as the impulses of her heart were moderate and 
guided by grace, her passions, almost subdued, cost 
her few combats. Her disposition was well adapted 
for Community life, being gentle, docile, quite lively 
and very even. Yet, she was not at all lacking in 
firmness, especially when there was question of duty, 
although, at the same time, she betrayed no harsh¬ 
ness nor stiffness. Cheerfully yielding to others 
whenever it was possible to do so, she made the sac¬ 
rifice of her own opinion with such wonderful self- 
command, that one must needs have been very clear¬ 
sighted to have detected in her, that first involuntary 
struggle of nature which she instantly repressed. 
She had an affectionate, sensitive nature, though not 
very demonstrative, much tact and wonderful dis¬ 
cretion. Her mind being quick and active, her 
repartee was always to the point. She generally 
spoke but little, and then only of God ; never of her- 


HER VIRTUES. 


401 


self or her affairs. Virtue she practised without 
affectation, always avoiding singularity even when 
doing good. Sometimes, she seemed absorbed in her¬ 
self, which probably proceeded either from her being 
under the influence of the Divine operations, or 
through respect for the company in vdiich she might 
be at the time. Her somewdiat absent turn of mind 
may also have contributed to this ; but it certainly 
did not arise from embarrassment or constraint, for 
the virtue of simplicity guided her in all things, and 
the rectitude of her judgment gave her great liberty 
of spirit, although to see her one might have judged 
otherwise. She took such care to lead a hidden life, 
that to appreciate her one must needs know her well, 
as, moreover, she possessed none of those brilliant 
gifts capable of attracting others—all her beauty 
was within. 

We do not specify the one virtue in which Sister 
Saint-Pierre excelled, for it would really be very 
difficult to decide which of several it was. Nor 
shall we enumerate all her virtues, deeming it pref¬ 
erable to mention only such as more immediately re¬ 
garded her state of life, making her a perfect nun 
and a holy Carmelite. Charity she possessed in an 
eminent degree, her tender and solid piety inspiring 
her with a most ardent and effective love for God, 
His glory and the salvation of souls being the sole 
object of her thoughts, aim of her prayers, and motor 
of her actions. This zeal which had animated her 
whole life, began, we may say, to consume her in its 
flames, from the moment when, in 1843, she was 
supernaturally acquainted with a knowledge of the 
Divine chastisements about to descend upon men, for 
34* 


402 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


their unparalleled violation of the first Three Com¬ 
mandments. Impelled by grace, she offered herself 
to God to satisfy His Justice, and avert the strokes 
of His wrath. So vivid were her impressions upon 
the loss of souls that her emotions were uncontrol¬ 
lable, and more than once, was she heard sobbing 
aloud in anguish. 

Her heart was ever dilated with love for our Lord. 
She honored the Sacred Humanity in all its Mys¬ 
teries ; but those of Its Birth and Hidden Life pos¬ 
sessed for her the most inexpressible charms, and 
her devotion to the Divine Infancy and the Holy 
Family was manifest on all occasions. 

Being portress, she took especial pleasure in open¬ 
ing the door to carpenters, as their occupation re¬ 
called to her the labors of the youthful Jesus and 
St. Joseph. One day, some one having driven into 
the court-yard in a small wagon drawn by an ass, 
our good Sister, approaching the- animal, at once 
began petting it, in remembrance of the services this 
humble beast had rendered Jesus and Mary in their 
flight into Egypt. 

At Christmas times, her joy and piety, which were 
unbounded, she manifested in every imaginable man¬ 
ner. With beaming countenance, she would con¬ 
template the statue of the Infant Jesus in the crib, 
take it in her arms, surround it with lighted candles, 
sing before it her most beautiful canticles, and, occa¬ 
sionally, like David before the Ark, she would even 
begin dancing in exultation, inviting her companions 
of the Novitiate to do likewise. When the Mother 
Prioress expressed astonishment, and warned her 
against dissipation, she exclaimed : “ Oh ! Mother, 


HER VIRTUES. 


403 


I do this in honor of the Holy Infant Jesus, in rep¬ 
aration for all those dances which offend Him.” 

Ardent indeed was also her affection for Jesus in 
the Eucharist, her faith being so lively, that it was 
manifested even in her exterior ; the expression of 
her face, her bearing, her looks when in the choir in 
presence of the Blessed Sacrament, easily persuading 
one, that piercing the Eucharistic veil, she really 
beheld Jesus upon the altar. On leaving the sanc¬ 
tuary, she left her heart there, and in whatever part of 
the house her occupations lay, she always turned her 
face in that direction, joyful indeed when she could 
see this holy spot, the home of her soul, its place of 
rest. It was here she immediately repaired during 
her moments of leisure, here she would gladly have 
passed her days and nights, and here, on Sundays 
and Feast-days she made her abode, where, motion¬ 
less and seemingly annihilated in God’s presence, 
she was oblivious of everything else. In speaking 
of the Blessed Eucharist, her usual reserve of man¬ 
ner gave way before the ardor of her feelings. A 
hundred times a day, oftener, perhaps, did she go in 
spirit to the Tabernacle to adore our Eucharistic 
Lord, frequently practicing an exercise of devotion 
which she had composed for these visits and for 
Spiritual Communion. She was especially devout 
at the August Sacrifice of the Mass, apparently lost 
in God and oblivious to all around her, and more 
than once during the Sacred Oblation, was she seen 
shedding torrents of tears. But it was at Holy 
Communion, that her faith, if we may thus express 
ourselves, assumed a marvellous expansion. Begin¬ 
ning her preparation on the eve, she would continue 


404 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


it during the night, adoring by fervent ejaculatory 
prayers, the Host she was to receive, and inviting 
the Blessed Virgin and the holy Angels to prepare 
her heart for the abode of her Celestial Guest, 
Whom when she had received, lost and enrapt in 
Him, she forgot all else, to enjoy His communications, 
those ineffable communications seemingly transport¬ 
ing her out of the flesh. The Sacred Heart of 
Jesus was her usual abiding place, this, the inex¬ 
haustible treasury whence she obtained such favors 
of grace and mercy, such supernatural lights for 
herself and others; this, also, her refuge in sorrows, 
her consolation in all necessities. 

We have witnessed the fervor and confidence of 
her devotion to the Blessed Virgin, even before her 
entrance into religion ; but this first love for Mary 
was slight indeed, when compared to what it became 
after her consecration to this Blessed Mother for¬ 
ever, in her holy Order of Mount Carmel. Her 
fervor was really ingenious in inventing new ways 
of honoring her ; she talked of her frequently, and 
longed to engage all hearts in her service, in re¬ 
turn for which love, she received through Mary’s 
mediation, spiritual favors innumerable, not the least 
of which were those wonderful communications con¬ 
cerning the prerogatives of the Blessed Mother of 
God. 

St. Joseph she always styled her good father, and 
she confidentially told one of her Sisters, that she 
had received many graces through the intercession 
of this holy Patriarch, and that she often prayed to 
him to obtain for her the gift of perseverance. The 
seraphic Mother St. Teresa was also the object of 


HER VIRTUES. 


405 


her tender and affectionate devotion, and we may 
say the same of her holy Angel Guardian. One 
day, during her novitiate, whilst busy in the gar¬ 
ret preparing the linen for the wash, it suddenly 
flashed across her mind, that at the death of her 
grand-father whom she venerated as a saint, she 
had preserved a lock of his snowy hair. Not being 
able to recall the exact disposition of this precious 
relic, which she thought must have been left under 
the paternal roof, she felt uneasy, and prayed her 
good Angel to watch over it. Immediately, on 
turning around, she sees beside her, a lock of snowy 
hair, the fac-simile of that she so prized ! Filled 
with astonishment, she inquires of the Sisters if they 
know anything about it, but none of them can give 
her the least information. 

She had reached a rare degree of humility. Even 
in the world, she had been continually exercised in 
the practice of this virtue, mother of all others ; and 
her soul, nourished with the bread of humiliation} 
found therein more delight, than worldlings in 
praises and adulation. We may judge of this by 
the fact that she would come to thank the Mother 
Prioress for having humbled her, and with such 
effusion of heartfelt gratitude as inspired great edi¬ 
fication ; hence, this holy food for which she fam¬ 
ished, her Superiors were prodigal in giving her, as 
much to second God’s designs and assure themselves 
of His guidance of her, as to guard the precious 
gifts adorning her soul. Her delicacy of conscience 
was such, that she sincerely believed herself an un¬ 
worthy sinner, the least and most miserable of the 
Community, and she reproached herself for imper- 


406 LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 

fections as if they were grave faults. One day, a 
Sister found her in tears, and, on inquiring the cause, 
Sister Saint-Pierre reminded her of a fault which 
she (Sister Saint-Pierre) had committed the day 
before in her presence. Her companion assured her 
she had not even noticed it, so trifling had it 
been. “ Nevertheless,” answered Sister Saint-Pierre, 
“if God was offended that is sufficient cause for 
tears.” * 

She had reached such a degree of perfection, that 
neither self-love nor self-seeking of any sort found a 
place in her heart or her thoughts. This she ingen¬ 
uously acknowledges, when she says that neither the 
graces showered upon her, nor the praises she received, 
ever excited in her the least sentiments of vanity. 
Thus, God’s gifts served only to increase her humility 
at thoughts of her own weakness and unworthiness ; 
and, far from experiencing sentiments of vain-glory 
on account of these supernatural favors, she trem¬ 
bled in anticipation of the account she would have 
to render of them. 

A few days before receiving the Habit, the Sister 
in charge of the clothes-room requested her to try 
on her religious dress. Leaving the garments on a 
table and making a sign to the young postulant to 
disrobe, she withdrew for a few moments, expecting 
to find, on her return, Sister Saint-Pierre in her new 
costume: but, instead, the latter, obedient to the 
letter, stood waiting, with inalterable patience, for 
some one to come and clothe her with the coarse 
habit she had not ventured to put on of herself, her 


Manuscript Life, p. 117. 


HER VIRTUES. 


407 


humility causing her to deem herself, utterly un¬ 
worthy of it. 

On one occasion, whilst Sister Saint-Pierre was a 
novice, the Mother Prioress, during recreation, told 
her to sing for a newly-arrived postulant, the Can¬ 
ticle she had sung the evening of her arrival at the 
convent, beginning, “ Bless God, I have the shelter 
sure.” She did so with such sweetness of voice and 
lively accents of piety that her new companion was 
delighted. When she had finished, the Mother 
Prioress said aloud : “ Well, Sister Saint-Pierre, how 
many thoughts of vanity had you whilst singing?” 
Lowering her eyes, she modestly answered, “ Mother, 
if I have had any, I have tried to banish them ; ” 
thus, showing her disposition to humility, by not 
publicly acknowledging that she had been free from 
those sentiments of vanity so natural under the cir¬ 
cumstances. 

Her obedience was prompt, implicit and perfect. 
With the simplicity of a child, she complied with 
all that was required, stimulated thereto by the 
example of the Child Jesus at Nazareth. The words 
of the Gospel, “He was submissive to them” were 
ever on her lips, and she suggested them to her com¬ 
panions with an earnestness it would be difficult to 
express. She was especially pleased one day dur¬ 
ing an instruction, to hear them pronounced in 
Latin, for in the language of the Church, they had 
to her a still more potent significance ;, hence, she 
made them her daily aliment, always drawing there¬ 
from new lights and charms. 

Her thoughts, her will, the interior lights she 
received, were all held subject to the will of her 


408 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


Superiors, whose commands and counsels, so lively 
was her faith, she ever received as coming from 
God Himself ; and even her manner when speaking 
to them, was so reverent that one could easily per¬ 
ceive she regarded in them, not human, but Divine 
authority. She used to say, “ If my Superiors 
desired a postulant or novice to take charge of my 
conduct and soul, I would readily submit as to God 
Himself.” Her obedience was singularly prompt 
and unwavering; knowing her Superiors’ wishes, 
was to her, synonymous with executing them, even 
though what was prescribed, may have been con¬ 
trary to her inclinations and feelings, A short time 
after her Profession, having inadvertently commit¬ 
ted a fault against obedience, she was inconsolable, 
expiating it by a public reparation, and such bitter 
tears that one might have supposed she had been 
guilty of a crime. This blind obedience she ren¬ 
dered not only to her Superiors, but to the Sisters 
upon whom she was in any way dependent, in fact, 
to all her companions, regarding them as her mis¬ 
tresses, and making it a duty to acquiesce in their 
wishes, just as a child, having no will but that of 
the guardians of its youth. So perfect and un¬ 
wavering was our cherished Sister in the practice of 
this virtue, that during her last illness, she could 
say, in all candor and simplicity : “ It is my conso¬ 
lation in the hour of death that I have always been 
obedient.” 

Her detachment was that of a true Carmelite. 
She loved, in God, all to whom she was bound, 
either by the ties of nature, religion or gratitude; 
but no immoderate affection for any one filled her 


HER VIRTUES. 


409 


Leart. Her parents were extremely dear to her, 
and she ever prayed most fervently for them, but 
seeing all things in God, she left to Him the care of 
their affairs, never disturbing the serenity of her 
soul by such useless thoughts. In consecrating her¬ 
self to the Lord she had fully comprehended this 
counsel of the Psalmist: “Hearken, O daughter, 
and see, and incline thy ear ; forget thy people and 
thy father’s house, and the King shall greatly desire 
thy beauty, for He is the Lord thy God.” 

Hence, she seldom spoke of what she had left in 
the world, and she was even seen to burn without 
reading them, certain letters whose perusal she 
feared might occasion her disquietude. She used to 
say, that in her opinion, one of the greatest obsta¬ 
cles to the perfection of a religious, was an inordi¬ 
nate love for one’s parents,—that we should love 
them tenderly and pray fervently for them, but not 
be continually engrossed with all their affairs,—and 
that this rule was the only infallible means of aid¬ 
ing them without being detrimental to ourselves. 

Her recollection was so profound that merely to 
see her was sufficient to raise one’s thoughts to God. 
She seemed unconscious of what was going on 
around her, so much so, that even after her Profes¬ 
sion, she was ignorant of the various places assigned 
the different nuns in the choir and refectory, and she 
was often surprised to hear of incidents that had 
taken place before her eyes. Calm, silent and 
modest, her presence was revealed only by the edifi¬ 
cation she diffused around her in the performance of 
her least actions. To be entirely united with the 
Celestial Spouse, she refused her senses whatever 
35 


410 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


could flatter or gratify them. Thus, in the garden 
she deprived herself of the pleasure of looking at 
the flowers ; or, when shown something new, though 
feigning to regard it attentively with her companions, 
she, in reality, would cast but an indifferent glance 
upon some unimportant part of the object, as she 
was once obliged to acknowledge to her Superioress ; 
for, whilst on the one side, concealing from human gaze 
the virtues she practised, on the other, her simplicity 
and obedience forced her to acknowledge them at the 
first question of authority. 

One of the nuns whose cell was so situated as to 
afford her the opportunity of observing Sister Saint- 
Pierre in hers, when the latter believed herself 
unseen by human eye, assures us, that during the 
time she occupied this cell (several years), she never 
saw Sister Saint-Pierre raise her eyes from her work 
except to cast them upon the little statue of the In¬ 
fant Jesus, which she always kept near her. After 
any supernatural communications, she would anpear 
pale, trembling and bathed in tears; and especially 
was this the case, when they regarded the woes 
impending over France. These tears flowed natu¬ 
rally, but calmly and silently ; she would also 
seem so absorbed in recollection that it was diffi¬ 
cult to withdraw her from it; and this would 
last for hours, though without liinderance the 
performance of her duties. It was sometimes n oticed, 
that on such occasions, she betrayed signs of great 
suffering ; also, that she appeared as if conversing 
with some one, or completely entranced by some 
object invisible to others. 


HER VIRTUES. 


411 


When she spoke to the Mother Prioress of her 
communications, she did so in the most humble 
manner, with brevity and simplicity. Her union 
with God was intimate and continual ; she never lost 
sight of Him, and, according to her expression, her 
soul, closely united to our Lord, was “ happily bound 
at His Feet.” But this life, to all outward appear¬ 
ance, heavenly and sweet, was so filled with interior 
trials and sufferings, that the Mother Prioress felt 
convinced it was the rigor of these, which, though 
helping to purify our dear Sister’s soul, likewise 
shortened her days. Is it astonishing, then, that 
her prayers were sometimes granted in a manner one 
might deem really miraculous ? 

We select the following incident from among 
others confirming this impression. One of the nuns 
was greatly worried about the future of her young 
sister, apparently very worldly, and who was to be 
sent to a large city where she would run great 
risk of losing her piety. On confiding her troubles 
to Marie de Saint-Pierre, the latter said to her, “ I 
beg you not to distress yourself so ; let us make a 
Novena together in honor of the Sacred Heart of 
Jesus, and He will take charge of the affair;” 
which prediction was indeed verified, for at the end of 
the Novena, circumstances causing this young person 
occasion for intercourse with a certain Religious 
House, she soon renounced the world to enter that 
Community. 

Our servant of God practiced universal mortifica¬ 
tion in a degree that was perfect, retrenching all 
satisfactions not absolutely necessary, and seeking 
such privations as she could impose upon herself 


412 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


without singularity. She was constantly studying 
occasions of sacrifice, was skillful in discovering 
them, and still more prompt in turning them to 
profit. And thus ever immolating herself, she had 
reached that interior death which forms her princi¬ 
pal characteristic. Her fidelity in all things was no 
less admirable; attentive to the slightest secret 
movements of grace, she bound herself to the least 
exterior points of her Rule, making herself as she 
said, “ its slave,” knowing indeed from experience, 
that herein lies the secret of all peace and true hap¬ 
piness for a Religious. Hence, her great love for 
silence and regularity ! So vigilant and exact was 
she on these points, that it would have been impos¬ 
sible ever to have found her guilty of the slightest 
violation of them, and she could indeed have been 
regarded as the living Rule of the house, for at the 
first stroke of the bell, work seemed to drop from 
her hands, nor would she even make a movement 
that might retard her obedience. And to know, 
love and put in practice, all their duties, her com¬ 
panions need but carefully follow her example. This 
cherished Sister likewise possessed, in an eminent de¬ 
gree, the spirit of the seraphic Mother St. Teresa ; 
she had that sweet liberty of spirit which distin¬ 
guishes a true Carmelite, and knew perfectly well 
how to blend with the practice of the most exalted 
virtues, the charms of charity and even gayety. One 
day, a friend brought to the convent a present of a 
portion of cake. Sister Saint-Pierre, then portress, 
was very much fatigued at the time. Immediately 
on receiving the cake, she hastened with it to the 
Mother Prioress, and presenting it to her, said, with 


HER VIRTUES. 


413 


her usual simplicity, “ What a providence, the ass is 
hungry!” The good Mother smiled, and gave a 
piece of the cake to her little portress, who giving 
thanks to God, gayly partook of it. 

During recreation, she spoke but little, always 
preferring to listen ; nevertheless, she was lively and 
amiable, expressing herself to the point, and taking 
part in all that was said, though ofttimes it was 
necessary for her to make extremely violent efforts 
to interrupt her interior converse with God. Her 
companions loved to be near her, because they 
always found it to their spiritual profit. In mat¬ 
ters of charity her reserve was especially noticeable ; 
she excused all, palliated their defects, and ever 
with tact and cordiality. As to services and favors 
to another, she never refused, stimulated thereto by 
the happy reflection that she was thus serving Jesus 
and Mary in the person of her Sisters. 

We have seen how she fulfilled, to the general 
satisfaction, the functions of assistant portress and 
then of first portress ; for a long time, performing 
the duties of even both offices, with most exemplary 
assiduity, ever proving herself discreet, active, calm, 
easily approached either from within or without the 
enclosure, affable to all, spreading everywhere the 
good odor of Jesus Christ, and thus gaining the 
esteem and affection of those with whom she had 
dealings. 

Though this duty was so extremely repugnant to 
her, as to exact great violence to her inclinations, 
it never disturbed her habitual recollection or the 
composure of her soul, fruits of her great purity 
of heart. As we have already related, it was even 
35 * 


414 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT—PIERRE. 


amidst the busiest moments of this distracting occu¬ 
pation, that our Lord favored her with the greatest 
graces. Her soul, strengthened like a rock by its 
union with that immovable rock, Jesus Christ, was 
secure from those agitations which divide the heart 
and disturb the mind. It was observed that she 
always acted without precipitation, yet without waste 
of time, no matter how numerous or distracting her 
occupations; and so much serenity and joy did she 
manifest in sacrificing herself in all things, that one 
would never have suspected the violence she must 
needs do her contemplative nature and supernatural 
attractions in the performance of many of her 
actions. For instance, when the Community re¬ 
moved to the new monastery, it not being entirely 
finished, the workmen were continually coming to 
and fro, which, of course, made much extra work 
for the virtuous portress, yet it never seemed to dis¬ 
turb her serenity in the least, and at such times as 
the Rule permitted her to speak, she would laugh¬ 
ingly say to them, with her aptitude for rhyme: 

“ When cheerfully we ope the door, 

To let our workmen in, 

This action by obedience blessed, 

Will help us Heaven’s bright crown to win.” 

During her last illness, after having passed a night 
of excruciating suffering, she said to one of the nuns 
who was from the same part of the country as her¬ 
self, “You remember that our little excursions in 
Brittany end with a feast, each person contributing 
his or her share, one paying for the cream, another 
for the sugar, etc. The good Jesus last night 


HER VIRTUES. 


415 


assigned to me the furnishing of the sugar, by mak¬ 
ing me suffer very much.” 

M. Lebrument, whom, as the reader may remem¬ 
ber, she had styled u the courier of the Infant 
Jesus,” he in turn, calling her his “ god-motlier,” 
desired after the death of the holy Carmelite, to 
have some little memento of her, and he wrote to the 
Mother Prioress to that effect. He received the 
following answer: “Your letter requesting some 
trifling souvenir of your poor * god-mother/ reminded 
me of an article of her own manufacture, made 
under rather singular circumstances, and which she' 
without the slightest intimation from me, had 
asked me to give you. I assure you that you 
are her sole legatee, for this is the only thing 
she expressed a wish to dispose of herself. And 
what do you suppose it is? I allow you a 
hundred guesses! It is a drum . . . , but a drum 
resembling others only in shape, and the idea of 
which is really very ingenious. The following is 
its history. At the time our poor Sister fell sick, 
we were just in the midst of the government elec¬ 
tions, and more than one alarm we had, I can 
assure you ! One day I said to her half jokingly, 
‘ since you cannot pray any more, you will have to 
be the spiritual drum, and whenever you hear the 
National Guard beat the call to arms, do you call 
the holy Angels to our assistance/ She accepted 
her new mission, an*d the next day presented me a 
little drum, having inscribed upon it the Holy 
Name of God, that of each of the choirs of Angels, 
&c. Unable to pray, she would take the little 
drum on her bed, and striking it with her fingers, 


416 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


she would thus call the Heavenly militia to our aid. 
The world would laugh in derision at this trait of 
childish piety, but you, sir, who are not of the world, 
will doubtless, like myself, see herein the admirable 
simplicity of a heart transformed by the science of 
the Crib and the virtue of obedience. This drum 
is yours. It will be just to the taste, no doubt, of 
your little Charles, and very acceptable to him. We 
will add something else for yourself and Madame 
Lebrument.” 

But M. Lebrument, who fully justified the Rev¬ 
erend Mother’s expression as being “not of the 
world,” far from giving the drum to his little boy, 
had it richly encased under a glass globe, as a 
precious relic which he hoped might ever remain in 
the family. 

To these details upon the virtues of our holy Car¬ 
melite, taken from the most reliable sources, we add 
the following testimony, the importance of which 
our readers must needs appreciate, as it is from the 
pen of a nun continually in contact with Sister 
Saint-Pierre, and, hence, having every opportunity 
of attentively observing her : 

“ Tô speak of Sister Marie de Saint-Pierre,” says 
she, “and to render homage to her virtues is, for 
me, both a happiness and a duty. To do this, I 
shall simply relate a few traits that struck my atten¬ 
tion, during my long-continued and intimate rela¬ 
tions with her. 

“She entered the convent several years after I 
did, and, although a Professed Religious at the time 
of her reception, I was still in the Novitiate, and con¬ 
sequently had ample opportunity for observing and 


HER VIRTUES. 


417 


admiring her. We soon perceived that she was a 
Religious, formed to every virtue ; especially notice¬ 
able to me were her humility, recollection and obe¬ 
dience. So joyfully and gratefully did she bear the 
trials and humiliations to which she was subjected, 
that we were all much edified : far from excusing: 
herself, she always accused herself, and she seemed 
ever seeking occasions of being humbled. Her 
recollection was such that often events transpired 
unseen before her eyes. One day, whilst she was a 
postulant, our Mother had permitted her to raise her 
eyes in the choir to see a touching ceremony ; but 
she mistook the end for the beginning, and when in 
obedience, she raised her eyes the ceremony was over, 
and she had seen nothing whatever of it. 

“ Until her Profession, I had no other relations with 
her than those arising from our both being in the No¬ 
vitiate ; but soon after her Profession, I perceived her 
very marked devotion to the Holy Infancy of our 
Lord, for which I also felt much attraction, and it 
was this, that cementing our friendship, gave me the 
opportunity of closely observing and knowing this 
beautiful soul. Her piety was so sweet and amiable 
that I was deeply impressed by it. Our little prac¬ 
tices of devotion always had some reference to the 
Mystery of the Divine Infancy, and the Holy 
Infant Jesus was the constant subject of our con¬ 
versations. Oh ! with what tenderness she spoke of 
the Divine Child ! How admirably she could con¬ 
verse upon His virtues! And though she always 
depreciated herself, it was easy to perceive that her 
knowledge of them v T as great. For rule cf conduct 
she had taken these words: i lie was submissive to 


418 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


them] and I can truly assert that she practised this 
rule in the highest degree of perfection. 

“ The duty of portress, assigned her a few years 
after her Profession, was a great trial to her virtue, 
conflicting, as it did, with that love of silence and 
concealment from the world so dear to her, yet, not- 
standing, I witnessed how prompt was her obedience, 
how entire her self-abnegation. 

“At the time of our change of monastery, her 
duties were increased, and, although overburdened 
with work, which she performed with great dili¬ 
gence, zeal and charity, she never, for a moment, 
departed from that spirit of recollection, which was 
habitual to her. Being then Depositary-Sister, I 
also lacked not occasions for exercising patience, and 
whenever she saw me somewhat cast down, or on the 
point of forgetting myself, she would say gently to 
me, in a low voice, ‘He was submissive^ to them,’ 
adding, ‘Come, Sister, let us submit to the Will of 
the Holy Infant Jesus; we are His little servants/ 

“The period during which we were obliged to 
live without enclosure was one that must have 
greatly increased her merits, and brightened her 
crown ; for although she had much to endure in 
consequence, she never complained ; no matter what 
the annoyance, it found her ever the same,— 
sweet, patient and resigned, her cheerfulness undi¬ 
minished. 

“ Her fortitude under physical suffering was also 
a subject of great edification to me. Being Infirm- 
arian at the time her feeble state of health relieved 
her from duty, she was thus confided to my care, 
which was about a year before her death. I cannot 


HER VIRTUES. 


419 


express my consolation in being so closely united to 
our holy, sick Sister, who was truly a model in sick¬ 
ness as under all other circumstances. She refused 
nothing, was satisfied with whatever was done for her, 
and seemed to forget her needs to occupy herself 
with God. 

“She was so perfectly obedient, that she would 
not have taken a step outside the infirmary without 
my permission. Her recollection was apparently 
continual,—in a word, she seemed to me rather an 
Angel than an invalid. Hence, I was deeply sensi¬ 
ble of my great loss when she no longer needed my 
care.” 

We finish this sketch by one last trait : her com¬ 
panions in Carmel declare that they are convinced 
this most pure soul preserved intact her Baptismal 
innocence, for she lived in the world as not belong¬ 
ing to it, and from her entrance into Religion, she 
was never known to commit a voluntary fault. 
Such is the unanimous testimony of the Com¬ 
munity. 


CHAPTER XXIII. 


HER LAST SICKNESS.—HER DEATH. 

“All I now care for is my Crucifix. It is my treasure, my 
strength, my consolation.” (The Sister's Words). 

To give in all its edifying details, a faithful descrip¬ 
tion of Sister Saint-Pierre’s last illness and death, 
we shall simply reproduce the account written in 
Carmel by order of the venerated Mother Prioress, 
Marie of the Incarnation, and in her name. These 
pages, the work of faithful witnesses, written under 
the inspiration of a pious and tender friendship, are, 
in our opinion, far too precious for our readers to 
be deprived of the full enjoyment of them : 

“ For a long time, our cherished Sister had fore¬ 
seen the approaching end of her exile ; in several of 
her letters, she says openly that our Lord had made 
known to her, she had but little longer to live. 
She also privately declared this to me in the most 
positive manner, and although she knew not the 
precise moment of her death, yet she spoke of it as 
a thing very near at hand. However, she had so 
far enjoyed tolerably good health, and except that 
she was subject to frequent attacks of sick headache, 
especially noticeable on Fridays, we could perceive 
no symptoms of failing health, until after she had 
420 


HER LAST SICKNESS.—HER DEATH. 421 

made the act of abandonment to our Lord, for the 
accomplishment of His designs. From that time 
forth, she seemed to become gradually enfeebled, the 
fire of Divine love and zeal for the salvation of 
souls slowly consuming her frame, together with 
the weight of the “Work” which, to use her own 
words, she bore “ with incredible sorrows.”- How¬ 
ever, little of this appeared exteriorly, for Sister 
Saint-Pierre, always exact and fervent, still fol¬ 
lowed the Pule, and faithfully performed the duties 
of portress, which had became less irksome after the 
Community removed to the new monastery. 

“In the summer of 1847, the Arch-Confraternity 
of the Reparation was canonically established, and 
our dear Sister’s joy was extreme. Relieved of that 
burden, which had rendered her existence so painful, 
she, in a measure, returned to life; her soul was 
filled with delight, happiness was pictured upon her 
countenance, and even her health appeared to recover 
its former vigor, so much so, that she was able to 
keep the Lenten fast of the following year most rig¬ 
idly; but just at the period the Church recalls to 
us the Passion of our Saviour, began also for this 
cherished Sister that long martyrdom which was to 
end a life so full of merits. 

“On the 30th of March, our Lord made known 
to her that she was near the dawn of her hopes: 
and, after this communication, she seemed to think 
only of Heaven, and long for Heaven alone. It 
was a subject on which she loved to converse, and 
some words which unwittingly escaped her lips, 
revealed to us the holy ardor consuming her 
soul. 


36 


422 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


“Recent events in France excited anew her fervor 
and zeal. Beholding the advent of the calamities * 
she had announced, she felt prompted to an act of 
truly heroic charity and devotion. At three 
o’clock, Good Friday, when prostrate on the ground 
to adore Jesus Christ dying on the Cross, it was 
revealed to her that the Divine wrath was about 
to descend upon men. Immediately, renewing her 
act of perfect abandonment, she offered herself 
to God as a victim to appease His irritated 
Justice. It really seemed as if the Lord had been 
awaiting only this last and generous offering, ere im¬ 
molating His courageous victim, for immediately, 
was developed that long and painful ailment which 
caused her final dissolution. 

“The most assiduous cares were lavished upon 
her, but the physician pronounced her case hopeless 
from the first. As our Sister already suspected this 
we felt, therefore, the less hesitation in informing 
her of her danger. There was but one thought con¬ 
nected with this announcement that moved her to 
tears: ‘that of leaving you all/ said she, ‘and of 
being separated from this Community so dear to me ; 
but in Heaven I shall pray for you, and I must 
sacrifice my life for the Work God has confided 
to me.’ 

“Before leaving her cell for the last time she 
asked one of the Sisters to go before the Blessed 
Sacrament, as she was unable to go herself, to ask 
our Lord’s benediction, and to make an especial offer- 

* French Revolution of February, 1848, called journées de 

Février. 


HER LAST SICKNESS.—HER DEATH. 423 

ing of herself to suffer all He might be pleased to 
send her. On reaching the infirmary she cast around 
her an expressive glance, which seemed to say : ‘ I 
shall never leave here.’ Nor did she; she had in¬ 
deed entered, for the last time, the precincts which 
were to witness the closing scenes of her virtues and 
sufferings. 

“ Some one having proposed to bring from her cell 
a few objects of devotion that she might continue to 
enjoy them, she replied, ‘No, the time has come 
when everything must be sacrificed/ Notwith¬ 
standing her condition, we had, however, a few 
gleams of hope, and the desire of prolonging a life 
so precious urged us to make use of every possible 
means for its preservation. As art seemed power¬ 
less, we had recourse to the Blessed Virgin, our 
dear, sick Sister herself, uniting in our prayers, but 
from obedience only. ‘As I am of so little use/ 
said she, ‘my health is a matter of slight conse¬ 
quence; why ask it of God? I will never be cured/ 
‘Pray then/ we said to her, ‘that our Lord may 
relieve your sufferings, if it be not His Will to cure 
you/ ‘No/ she answered, ‘Whilst I have never 
asked anything especial of God, in the way of suf¬ 
ferings and sacrifices, neither have I ever refused 
Him anything/ On a Sister asking her how she 
felt, ‘ I am very ill/ said she, ‘ but all this will soon 
end/ ‘ Are you worse then ? ? continued the former, 
to which question, Sister Saint-Pierre’s only reply 
was, ‘ Pray that my death may be holy/ 

“ She seemed, on entering the infirmary, so deeply 
penetrated with a sense of the judgments of God, 
that she beheld herself as crushed beneath the 


424 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


weight of His Justice. Forgetting as it were, the 
favors He had showered upon her, she thought 
only of her offences and of imploring His pardon 
for them. These sentiments of humility in a soul 
so pure are easily understood, when we remember 
the vivid lights she had had upon the sanctity 
of God, and her own nothingness. So deep was the 
impression of fear thus made upon her, that her 
whole exterior evidenced the severity of her interior 
sufferings; she would seem at times entirely ab¬ 
sorbed, and more than once did I find her in tears. 
On inquiring the cause, she would reply, ‘ Mother, 
I am thinking of the judgments of God, and weep¬ 
ing for my sins/ 

“ This was during the first stages of her illness. 
Let us follow her to the end thereof. 

“ Sister Saint-Pierre’s malady was a severe pul¬ 
monary phthisis, which conjointly with some less 
strongly characterized ailments, wrought the most 
frightful ravages in her poor body. She was con¬ 
sumed by a burning fever, her throat became 
ulcerated, her tongue and mouth were as if inces¬ 
santly pierced by cruel thorns,—a noticeable fact, 
since our Lord had told her, she must pray and 
suffer for blasphemers. Night succeeded night, 
without her being able to snatch the least repose, 
and as she was obliged to keep the same position, 
any change being almost a martyrdom, ulcers were 
formed which added to her sufferings. During 
two months and a half of her illness, she partook of 
no solid food, her only nourishment being liquids in 
small quantities ; and towards the last, she refused 
everything but pure water, to which, twice a day, 


HER LAST SICKNESS.—HER DEATH. 425 

was added a little milk. This milk, of which she 
always made an offering to the Blessed Virgin before 
taking, never caused any bad effects, although she 
was unable to swallow even lighter beverages without 
instantly rejecting them. Her body became, in con¬ 
sequence, so like a skeleton, that the sight of it 
made one shudder,—the skin being shrunken to the 
bones and parched as if it had passed through fire ;— 
her face alone retained its usual freshness and bril¬ 
liancy of complexion. 

“ This state of suffering, so frightful to behold, 
was prolonged beyond all human expectation ; but 
it never occasioned the least change of disposition in 
this generous soul ; her patience was ever the same, 
her union with God continual, her spirit of sacrifice 
entire, her docility, innocence and simplicity ever 
that of a child. Hence, when asked if anything 
troubled her, she would answer, ‘No, Mother, for 
by the grace of God I suffer all that He wills, and 
I comply with all that is required of me/ In order 
to encourage her in these sentiments, I recalled to 
her mind the Infant Jesus, and the graces she had 
received through the Mystery of the Holy Infancy. 
She answered, ‘ The Divine Master then taught me 
the science of the Crib; now, it is that of the Cross/ 
Alas! her lips, as yet, had only touched the brim of 
the bitter chalice that she was to drink to the very 
dregs. 

“ Animated by the most tender confidence in God 
and ardent longings for Heaven, the' thoughts of 
approaching death filled her with joy. ‘My hour 
has come/ she would say; ‘soon will all my bonds 
be broken. When shall I contemplate Thee, O 
36 * 


426 LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 

Heavenly Abode? When, O my God, shall I be¬ 
hold Thee, face to face and without veil ? , 

‘ If any of us spoke to her of Heaven, her coun¬ 
tenance becoming radiant with delight, she would 
answer : ‘ I long to be there ; Beautiful Heaven, 
Eternal Home, the goal of all my desires ! When 
from earth, where I sigh and moan, shall I take my 
flight towards thee ? 7 —or, in other beautiful words 
from the Canticles, which might at the time recur 
to her. Just to see her was calculated to persuade 
one that a ray of Beatitude had already pene¬ 
trated her soul ; for the sweetest serenity was upon 
her brow, a smile upon her lips, and her mouth 
opened only to speak of God. So deeply absorbed 
in contemplation was she, that one might have 
looked at her a long time, without her raising her 
eyes. 

“In the early part of June, she became so weak 
that she asked to have the Last Sacraments admin¬ 
istered, and as there was really imminent danger of 
death, I hastened to comply with her request. She 
received the Holy Viaticum and Extreme Unction 
with great fervor, and in the most touching manner 
asked pardon of the Community for any disedifica- 
tion she may have given. After the ceremony, a few 
of the Sisters remained to pray. Her face was radi¬ 
ant, and she seemed to be in a kind of ecstasy, so 
much so, that no one could behold her without being 
filled with devotion and moved to tears. 

“After an interval, I approached her bedside and 
asked her if she were asleep. ‘ Oh ! no/ she replied, 
‘ I am communing with our Lord/ ‘You are very 


HER LAST SICKNESS.—HER DEATH. 427 

happy then?’ ‘ Yes, Mother, I desire nothing more, 

I have my All !. 

“On Friday, June 16, she had a severe spell, 
which was thought to be the last, ai d the Community 
repaired to the infirmary to recite the Prayers for the 
Agonizing. The dear sick Sister, who was perfectly 
conscious, united with us by making frequent aspir¬ 
ations, which was all she could do, so intense were 
her sufferings. Suddenly, she entered into a super¬ 
natural state the effects of which were very apparent. 
When, after the recommendation of the departing 
soul, our Sisters pronounced these words, ‘ Maria, 
mater gratiœ , mater misericordiœ / she impulsively 
threw up her arms towards Heaven, with the 
eagerness of a child springing forward at sight of 
its mother; and she remained a long time in this 
position, although a few moments previously, so 
weak and stiff were her arms that it had been found 
impossible to have her make the Sign of the Cross. 

“Afterwards, at two different internals, she ex¬ 
tended her arms in the form of a cross, thus to 
expire as a victim, and when we attempted to pre¬ 
vent it, she said, ‘ Leave me thus, for me it is a 
duty/ Alternately taking her crucifix, and her 
statue of the Infant Jesus which she always kept 
beside her, she covered them with kisses and pressed 
them to her heart. Then, holding the little statue 
of the Infant Jesus as high as possible, she pro¬ 
nounced in a low tone, though very solemnly, these 
words: ‘ Eternal Father, once more I offer Thee 
this Adorable Child, Thy Divine Son, for the expi¬ 
ation of my sins and those of the human race, for 
the needs of the Holy Church, for France and the 


428 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


Reparation. Amiable Jesus, I abandon this Work 
into Thy hands ; for it I have lived, for it I shall 
die ! ’ She now placed the statue upon her head, 
saying as she did so, ‘ Divine Child, cover my 
criminal head with the merits of Thy Precious 
Blood; renew in me, grace and innocence; clothe 
me in Thy purity and the spirit of Thy humility. 
Oh ! hasten unto me ! When shall I leave earth ? 
Come, O my Jesus, and delay not ! Mary, my 
tender Mother, come for my soul !’ All these ejac¬ 
ulations and many others of a similar nature, she 
pronounced with such ineffable accents of fervor as 
one would in vain attempt to reproduce ; they could 
be likened only to sparks of fire escaping from a 
blazing hearth ! 

“She asked God’s pardon for her faults, then 
begged pardon of the Community, and shedding 
copious tears, she thanked us for the kindnesses and 
attention bestowed upon her, exclaiming when she 
had done sd, ‘Oh! my Sisters, what happiness to 
die a Carmelite!’ Then to myself she said, ‘Adieu, 
Mother, give me your blessing, I shall soon appear 
before God, and I am happy to die in your arms.’ 

“After expressing her gratitude to me for the 
care I had taken of her soul, she murmured, ‘ The 
hour has come! O Jesus, hasten!’ In a little while, 
crossing her arms on her breast, she said, ‘ Father, I 
remit my soul into Thy hands.’ For a few mo¬ 
ments, she remained buried in contemplation, then, 
returned to her natural state. 

“ During this touching scene, we (the Community 
assembled in this chamber of death) were so deeply 
impressed with the consciousness of the presence of 


HER LAST SICKNESS.—HER DEATH. 429 


the supernatural and celestial, that our feelings 
found vent in tears of silent admiration. 

“ Sister Saint-Pierre, during her illness, received 
Holy Communion, either through devotion or as 
Viaticum, as often as her condition and our holy 
Rule permitted. This precious favor for which she 
sighed, was all her strength and consolation. She 
would, as was her wont in health, begin her prepa¬ 
ration on the previous eve, and as she was unable to 
sleep, the night was passed in loving colloquies with 
our Lord. Those who watched beside her bed have 
told us, that they never experienced more devotion 
and fervor than at such times. On one occasion, 
our pious Sister unable to restrain her emotions at 
thoughts of communicating, gave vent to them in 
the following lines : 

“ ‘To-morrow’s morn brings to my soul, 

The tender Spouse Divine ; 

He comes to make my weakness strength, 

His gifts and graces mine.’ ” 

“ And from time to time she would murmur : 

“ 1 0 ling’ring shades of night, why will ye never flee, 

That my Beloved, my God, may come to me ? ’ ” 

“ Then, taking up her statue of the Infant Jesus, 
and covering it with kisses, she would ask pardon 
for her faults, and entreat Him to purify the heart 
of His little servant : after which, offering Him 
to the Eternal Father, she would, weak and suf¬ 
fering as she was, hold the statue uplifted, keep¬ 
ing it motionless in that fatiguing position for an 
hour. 


430 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


“Once, when after giving her permission to 
receive Holy Communion, I hesitated, fearing she 
was not entirely herself, as she had passed a very 
bad night and appeared much depressed, she re¬ 
minded me of the promised favor as soon as she saw 
me in the morning. ‘Mother/ said she, ‘I am 
waiting for my God, when will He come ? Oh ! 
how I long for Him, how I need Him!* It is 
needless to say that I yieldêd to her desires. After 
receiving on this occasion, she remained for some 
time so absorbed in prayer, that to look at her, one 
might readily have supposed her soul already in the 
possession of eternal felicity. 

“ One of our nuns declares that once when Sister 
Saint-Pierre received Holy Communion, the expres¬ 
sion of her countenance was marvellously holy, and 
so radiant with light that she found it impossible to 
keep her eyes fixed upon it. * 

“On Trinity Sunday, the Viaticum was again 
administered to Sister Saint-Pierre. Being the 
patronal feast of the Arch-Confraternity of the Rep¬ 
aration, she had desired to die on that day, but God 
had decreed otherwise, and He made it known to 
her at Communion. Some time after the ceremony, 
I went to the Infirmary to see her. ‘ Mother/ said 
she, ‘ I am still to remain a little longer on earth, 
because my soul is not sufficiently purified; and 
during this time my sufferings will be most excruci¬ 
ating, for our Lord has attached me to the Cross, 
and there I shall remain until my last sigh. Strive 
not to surround me with attentions or to afford me 
relief, for now I must suffer and I desire to fix my 
thoughts upon Eternity only, and to remain alone 


HER LAST SICKNESS.—HER DEATH. 431 

with my God. I can scarce speak any more; they 
think I am asleep, but no, I am occupied with Him. 
Soon shall I contemplate His Adorable Face, soon 
shall I sing His praises for all Eternity. Oh ! how 
I shall pray for the Church, for France, for the 
Community, and for the Reparation . . . . ! ’ 

“‘ But/ said I to her, ‘ have you no fears as re¬ 
gards this Work,—either that you may have been 
mistaken, or followed rather your own ideas than 
the inspirations of the spirit of God?* 

“‘No, no/ she answered in a grave and solemn 
tone, ‘that I may have been mistaken, I have 
always allowed ; but I can positively declare, now, 
when on the point of appearing before the Lord, 
that I have never acted herein by my own spirit ; it 
cost me very much indeed ; but I did nothing except 
by the Will of God aud to accomplish His designs. 
All that I wrote by order of our Superiors, was in 
the sincerity of my soul, and I would be willing to 
attest it with my blood. By the grace of God, hav¬ 
ing nothing with which to reproach myself herein, 
I am perfectly tranquil/ ‘ Have you any hope for 
the future of France V I asked. ‘I have the great¬ 
est ; the designs of the wicked will be baffled ; peace 
will be restored. It w r as to accomplish this that the 
Work of the Reparation was established, and now that 
it is, my career is ended, as our Lord has made known 
to me; for it was for this Work, destined to save 
France, God placed me on earth. Oh ! how good 
God is Î How great His Mercy ! Desirous that 
nothing, not even death, should separate His little 
servant from Him, He purifies her entirely in this 
world, so as to give her immediate entrance into 



432 LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 

Heaven. No, never could I have believed that He 
would have accorded me this grace, had I not heard 
it from Himself. Such is God’s sanctity, that I 
had supposed myself destined to remain in Purga¬ 
tory until the end of the world; but no, I have only 
to suffer a little longer here. Let us enter into the 
designs of God. Oh ! how true it is, that He 
has means of satisfying His Justice unknown to 
man ....!’ 

“ And now, this generous victim indeed entered 
upon a new career of suffering, the rigors of which 
we would vainly endeavor to describe. She re¬ 
quested that we would not attempt to mitigate 
them. ‘No,’ she would say, ‘nothing now but to 
suffer ; we must let God act.’' If offered anything 
she would answer, ‘I take it, because it is given 
me, but I do not ask for it.’ Nevertheless, yield¬ 
ing rather to the voice of obedience than the re¬ 
quirements of nature, she returned to the ordinary 
way, taking and asking for what was necessary to 
her state. But, henceforth, nothing could be found 
to alleviate her sufferings, whatever was given her 
with that intention, having the contrary effect. Yet 
a complaint never escaped her lips. At times, the 
excess of pain would, in spite of her, wring from 
nature a few plaintive cries, but these were mingled 
with such edifying aspirations and expressions of 
resignation as the following : ‘ My God, how I 
suffer ! Have pity on me, assist me, forsake not 
Thy little hand-maid. Thou knowest Lord, I am 
Thy victim, oh ! remember it. How admirable is 
God in His ways! Let us adore His Holy Will. 
Oh ! the long, long hours of time! How ardently 



HER LAST SICKNESS.—HER DEATH. 433 

I sigh after my Beloved! My sweet Jesus, wilt 
Thou not let me die? Come, Lord Jesus, come, 
hasten unto me ! } 

“ In her severest paroxysms of suffering, she 
would sometimes say, in accents of indescribable 
anguish, ‘ Ah ! how terrible the chastisements of 
Divine Justice ! My God, how rigorous Thy 
judgments! Were it but known what I endure! 
O my Divine Spouse, how bitter Thou art become 
to me, Thou Who art so sweet !' To sustain her 
in those moments of desolation, we would remind 
her that she had offered herself to God for the 
accomplishment of His designs. ‘ Yes/ she would 
answer, ‘and I do not regret it/ My God, I will 
all that Thou wiliest, be Thy severity what it may, 
and if necessary, I consent to suffer until the end of 
the world ! ’ 

“ When asked where she suffered most, she an¬ 
swered, ‘ I suffer excruciatingly in every part of my 
body, it is a universal martyrdom ; my bed is a 
Purgatory in which I burn, and am consumed by 
fire, and every instant seems to me a century. I do 
not ask God to abridge or assuage my sufferings, 
but I do look joyfully forward to the hour of 
deliverance. My Divine Jesus, when shall I be 
with Thee forever ? ’ She likewise loved to repeat 
these words, ‘I die a daughter of the Church and of 
Carmel/ In her most violent paroxysms of pain, 
she would say to us in a tone of supplication that 
wrung tears from our eyes, ‘I entreat you, to ask 
our Lord to give me patience, I cannot suffer 
longer; speak to me of Heaven, speak to me of 
GodC Calling for her crucifix she would kiss it 
37 


434 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


repeatedly and say, / This is my treasure, my 
strength, my consolation, I keep my eyes ever fixed 
upon Him, for He encourages me to suffer. Yes, 
my Love is crucified, and I am crucified with Him/ 

“She often requested us to offer her sufferings 
anew to our Lord for His designs ; and once, when 
asked to apply them to an especial intention, she 
replied, ‘ I know not whether I am free to do so, for 
I am wholly consecrated to the Work of the Repa¬ 
ration as a victim; but obedience will decide the 
matter/ 

“A few days before her death, I asked her 
how a victim should die. ‘Immolated/ was her 
answer. 

“ This fearful agony was so prolonged, that to 
bear it Sister Saint-Pierre must needs have received 
from God especial, indeed, supernatural strength, 
both physical and spiritual, for, amidst it all, 
she preserved the most profound peace and inal¬ 
terable composure; and a few moments’ respite was 
sufficient to restore to her features, distorted by pain, 
their usual sweet and amiable expression. One day, 
when speaking of the care and attention her suffer¬ 
ing condition necessitated, she said : * Nature is very 
exacting, although the heart be entirely given to 
our Lord/ 

“Each one esteemed herself happy in rendering 
our dear Sister any little services, for they were 
always so gratefully received and so agreeably 
requited, that one and all left her bed-side most 
reluctantly ; and as for myself, her manifestations of 
love and thankfulness towards me were touching: in 
the extreme. 


HER LAST SICKNESS.—HER DEATH. 435 


“ One clay, on seeing me, she extended her arms, 
and tried to raise herself upon her bed. ‘ Where 
do you wish to go?’ I asked. 'Into our Mother's 
arms,' she answered. And with my assistance, after 
a hard struggle, she succeeded. ‘ Oh ! what a happi¬ 
ness,' she exclaimed, ‘to be able to say everything to 
our Superiors ! ' 

“ This innocent soul, whom Satan had never suc¬ 
ceeded in bringing under his sway, now suddenly 
became a butt for the most violent assaults of Hell ; 
for, as every part of her being must participate in 
the holocaust, it was necessary for her to suffer temp¬ 
tation. ‘It is a part of my penance,' she would 
say. And during her last days upon earth, she was, 
indeed, a prey to the malice of the demons. One of 
these evil spirits, she seemed to think, was ever near 
her, tempting her to impatience and rebellion to 
God's Will, whispering in her ear insults and blas¬ 
phemies, and even thoughts of despair. ‘ Oh ! how 
cruelly that spirit torments me!' she would say. 
Her bed appeared to her as of fiery coals, and so 
great was her agitation that she was unwilling to 
remain an instant alone. She had recourse to the 
Blessed Virgin, but her enemy only redoubled his 
efforts. ‘ Ah ! how I suffer ! ' she would cry ; ‘ My 
God, I cannot bear more, have pity on me ! ' The 
very sight of her moved one to compassion. 

“At last, fleeing for refuge to the Holy Infancy 
of our Lord, dear object of her tender devotion, she 
put on a little Gospel of the Circumcision. The 
virtue of the Holy Name of Jesus dispelled the 
demon ; the burning fire, the terrible temptation,— 
all vanished in an instant, and the sweetest compos- 


436 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


ure resumed its reign in her soul. She also had fre¬ 
quent recourse to holy water. ‘ It relieves both my 
body and soul/ she would say. 

“A few days before her death, she was honored 
by a visit from Mgr. Morlot, the venerable Arch¬ 
bishop, who deigned to come and bless her for the 
last time,—a very great consolation, which our dear, 
dying Sister truly appreciated ! She was also visited 
by the Reverend Father Superior of the Community, 
—another favor for which she also loved to testify 
her joy and gratitude. 

“A lady, who in quality of benefactress of the 
monastery was privileged to enter the enclosure, one 
day, asked the Reverend Mother Prioress to allow 
Sister Saint-Pierre to give her a parting blessing. 
The Mother Prioress was forced to reply in the neg¬ 
ative, telling her that the mere suggestion of such a 
thing would be a great shock to the holy, dying nun’s 
humility. However, she gave permission for this 
worthy lady to be taken to the infirmary to see Sis¬ 
ter Saint-Pierre. The latter seemed to be sleeping, 
but was really communing with God. After gazing 
upon her a few moments, the worthy benefactress, not 
wishing to disturb her repose, was on the point of 
retiring, when suddenly Sister Saint-Pierre seizes 
the little statue of the Infant Jesus, and, without 
saying a word, makes with it the Sign of the Cross 
upon her, thus giving her the desired blessing, which 
was, no doubt, all the more appreciated, by reason 
of its being unexpected and spontaneous. 

“The pure soul of our languishing victim had 
recovered its peace and early tranquillity, but her 
body remained a prey to indescribable sufferings, 


HER LAST SICKNESS.—HER DEATH. 437 

which became more acute as the end approached. On 
Friday, July 7, her agony really began, and this, her 
last night on earth, was one of excruciating suffer¬ 
ing. To the very end, she retained perfect conscious¬ 
ness, often asking for holy water, and uniting her¬ 
self to God by fervent aspirations. As it was thought 
she could not live until morning, the Prayers for the 
Departing were recited around her bed that evening. 

“ I remained near her, as it seemed to afford her 
consolation, and she had entreated me not to leave 
her. However, morning having dawned, I with¬ 
drew for a few moments. During this interval, she 
wished to change her position, but, as those who had 
to assist her in doing so (for she had long since 
been unable to make a single movement unaided), 
told her I had advised her not being moved (clearly 
comprehending my motive in this), but that if she 
suffered too much they would try, she replied, ‘No, 
then, obedience ! ’ 

“She responded to all the acts suggested to her; 
and, with a smile upon her lips, continually kissing 
her crucifix, or pressing it to her heart, she would 
say, ‘ He is mine, I am His ! What happiness it is 
to suffer ! , On returning to her bed-side, she said 
to me,'‘Mother, when?’ ‘When/ I continued, 
‘ will the Spouse come, do you mean ? ’ She answered 
by a sign in the affirmative, and I said, ‘ Soon, my 
child, very soon, in a few moments, nowP She 
appeared satisfied at this, and became recollected. 
Then, remembering that in a past communication 
our Lord had promised to restore to her soul, at the 
hour of death, the image of God, she wished to 
renew her Baptismal Vows; and, as a symbol of the 
37* 


438 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


grace she desired to receive, asking for some holy 
water, she made the Sign of the Cross with it upon 
her head, and pronounced these words: i Child, I 
baptize thee in the Name of the Father, and of the 
Son, and of the Holy Ghost/ Then, joining her 
hands, she added: ‘I renounce Satan, and all his 
works and pomps; I desire to belong forever to 
Jesus Christ !* 

“A short while previously, she was apparently 
engaged in a painful conflict ; but after the forego¬ 
ing little ceremony, her face assumed such an expres¬ 
sion of heavenly beauty, that one might readily have 
imagined her a child, just from the Baptismal 
waters, or an Angel who would soon return to its 
celestial abode. 

“From that moment until her last sigh, her lips 
never ceased moving in prayer. The sweat of death 
was upon her brow, its chill had already benumbed 
her pain-worn frame, and yet the cold and livid 
lips murmured, ‘Jesus, Mary, Joseph! Come? 
Lord Jesus! . . . Sit Nomen Domini benedictum!’ 
. . . . Such were the last words we could under¬ 
stand ; her lips continued to move, but we could not 
distinguish what she said. Soon, she lost the use 
of hearing, her eyes closed of themselves, and as a 
last trait of resemblance to her Divine Master, she 
uttered a cry, and sweetly expired in presence of the 
whole Community.” * 

* Annals of Carmel of Tours, p. 83, and following. 


CHAPTER XXIV. 


HER SEPULCHRE.—HER WORK. 

“She will protect your beloved House, the diocese and France!” 

.... ( Mgr . Morlot’s Words), 

u The precious death of Marie de Saint-Pierre took 
place about noon on the 8th of July, 1848, on a 
Saturday, the day of the week consecrated to Mary, 
the Mother of God. Our cherished Sister had fer¬ 
vently supplicated the Blessed Virgin to present 
her soul to God, and she had also prayed that the 
final summons might not come at night, as she 
wished all the Sisters present at her death, and yet 
desired to spare them the dread and awe accompan- 
ing a death-bed scene at such an hour. This chari¬ 
table desire was granted ; so true it is, that the Lord 
does the will of those who love Him. As soon as 
the servant of God had breathed her last, the assur¬ 
ance of her eternal happiness, filled the hearts of 
her companions, afflicted at her loss, and all felt 
prompted to invoke her intercession, rather than to 
pray for her repose. Each recalled her virtues, and 
openly declared her a Saint, although in utter ignor¬ 
ance of the rare supernatural gifts and Heavenly 
communications, with which the Lord had favored 
her. She became the object of general veneration 

439 


440 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE, 


in the Community, and all were anxious to obtain 
the least trifle she had used ; they approached her 
most reverently, articles of devotion were made to 
touch her, and had it been possible, we would never 
have parted with her precious remains. Her face 
wore an air of peace and happiness, and her limbs 
which during her sickness, were stiff by reason of 
extreme emaciation and sufferings, now became very 
flexible. One of the Sisters who slept near the 
infirmary, at first, felt a little of that natural fear 
ever inspired by the presence of death ; but sud¬ 
denly, it vanished before an interior supernatural 
conviction that the deceased was in Heaven, which 
had the effect of not only fully reassuring her, but 
also of exciting her soul to the practice of virtue. 
There was one of the nuns, however, who, in spite 
of herself, did not share the opinion of her com¬ 
panions, regarding Sister Marie de Saint-Pierre’s 
sanctity. 

“ It is true, she acknowledged that she had no fault 
to find, but that the life of Sister Saint-Pierre, so 
simple, so ordinary, should merit such eulogium, 
appeared to her incredible. Nevertheless, disquieted 
at seeing herself so little in accord with every one 
around her, she, a month previous to the death of our 
holy Sister, addressed the following fervent prayer 
to God : ‘ My God, if Marie de Saint-Pierre be as 
holy as she is reputed to be, make it known to me 
by affording me such relief (this nun was very ill at 
the time), that I may follow the regular observances 
of the Community.’ Her prayer was granted instan¬ 
taneously, and, to the great surprise of all, she could, 
at once, take part in the exercises of the Choir. 


HER SEPULCHRE.—HER WORK. 441 

11 Still, this first proof did not convince her. Her 
change of opinion did not occur until after the death 
of the Sister, and was brought about in the follow¬ 
ing manner: One night she had a dream which 
greatly disquieted her. It seemed to her that she and 
all her companions were assembled around the bed 
of the dying Sister, who, expiring before her eyes, 
was suddenly resuscitated under the form of a little 
child, the most beautiful she had ever seen. Step¬ 
ping down from the bed, it kissed each Sister present 
except herself, then disappeared forever. On the 
morrow, at Holy Communion, she found that her 
opinions had undergone a thorough change. The 
life of her holy companion recurred to her mind with 
such evidences of sanctity as she had seemed to have 
utterly overlooked, and she regretted not having ap¬ 
preciated so inestimable a treasure until it was re¬ 
moved from their midst. 

“ Whilst our dear Sister was exposed in the Choir 
upon her mortuary couch, numbers of persons came 
to see her, who, as they gazed upon placid face, said 
in earnest tones : ‘ She looks like an Angel ! O ! 
may she pray for us ! 9 Many assisted at her obse¬ 
quies, and all, especially those who had best known 
her, paid to her memory the last tribute of tears and 
benedictions. 

“It was noticed that four large wax candles, 
placed at the angles of the coffin, not only burned 
without being consumed during the whole of the 
funeral ceremony, which lasted about an hour and a 
half, but also, that they were extinguished with dif¬ 
ficulty ; although during this time, there was such 


442 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


a strong draught that the wax candles held by the 
nuns flickered and wasted very much indeed. 

“This fact, which we merely mention without 
comment, was proved by means of a fifth wax 
candle, which had not been used because it was 
much shorter than these. On comparing them with 
this, there was found just the same difference between 
them, after the ceremony as before. 

“Heaven, likewise, gave other testimonials in 
favor of our humble Carmelite. Several persons, 
who had recourse to her intercession, assured us that 
they experienced the effects thereof in a most extra¬ 
ordinary manner ; * and in various places very dis¬ 
tant from one another, it was remarked that the 
small particles of her garments (for as soon as her 
death became known, we were importuned, from all 
quarters, for things she had used) exhaled a very 
defined balsamic odor, not, however, resembling any 
known perfume, but an indescribable celestial balm 
as it were, which, penetrating the soul, incited it to 
love of God and virtue. 

“ Persons of considerable note, both religious and 
secular, have attested this fact, and one even asserts 
that on opening a box in which these pieces of stuff 
had been lying some time, such a sweet perfume was 
emitted as would lead one to imagine it contained a 
bouquet. 

* In complying with these requests, we were careful to notify 
the persons that they must regard these articles as simple me¬ 
mentos of Sister Saint-Pierre, and not as authenticated relics, 
and objects of a veneration due solely to the relics of Saints, re¬ 
cognized ao such by the Church. (Note of the Circular of Car- 
in J oi l'ouïr). 


HER SEPULCHRE.—HER WORK. 443 

u A lady of Ingonville in the diocese of Rouen, 
was ill of a malignant fever, and the physicians saw 
no hope of her recovery. A small piece of Sister 
Saint-Pierre’s veil was sent to her. She says, that 
as soon as it was laid upon her, she experienced an 
extraordinary internal sensation which lasted four 
hours ; the fatal crisis, the first symptoms of which 
had already appeared, was passed, she spent a good 
night, and on the following day, was pronounced out 
of danger.” 

To this edifying narration quoted literally from 
the annals of Carmel of Tours, we add some inter¬ 
esting details from another equally reliable source. 
When informed of her death, Archbishop Morlot, 
who, as we have seen, went to bless Sister Saints 
Pierre in her last illness, wrote the following letter 
to the Reverend Mother Prioress : “ I hear with the 
liveliest emotion of sorrow of this good Sister’s 
death ; but she is to be congratulated and not pitied* 
Let us cherish the hope that she will continue in 
Heaven, where her influence will be far more 
powerful, and efficacious than when in the flesh* 
that which she began, and for which she labored so 
earnestly on earth. She will protect your beloved 
House, the diocese and France ! » . * . I entertain 
the sweet confidence that she will. . . * To-morrow 
morning, I will offer the August Sacrifice of the 
Mass for her and for you all.” 

When, according to custom, the Circular rela¬ 
tive to Sister Saint-Pierre was prepared and sent to 
the Prelate, His Grace wrote again to the Mother 
Prioress : “ I have read with great interest the 
notice you sent me. I doubt not of the salutary 



444 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


impression its perusal will produce in all the Con¬ 
vents of your Order, and with you, I cherish the 
unshaken confidence, that this chosen soul having 
led a life of faith and prayer on earth, and prac¬ 
tised those beautiful virtues which distinguish the 
true Spouse of Jesus Christ, will now, in the posses¬ 
sion of glory and happiness, efficaciously plead our 
cause with the Lord.” 

Such were the exalted sentiments entertained by 
the Most Reverend Archbishop of Tours, of her 
sanctity, and indeed by all who knew her. None, 
however, was more deeply penetrated with a sense 
of her merits than M. Dupont. In his eyes, a death 
so holy w r as truly a day of joy, the beginning of 
glory for our humble Carmelite, and for her Work 
of predilection. With a countenance beaming with 
holy joy, he had assisted at her obsequies, and 
accompanied, as in triumph, her mortal remains to 
the cemetery of Saint-Jean-des-Corps,* a spot espe¬ 
cially dear to him, since only six months previously, 
he had there lain the body of his beloved and only 
daughter Henrietta. On receiving from the Car¬ 
melite convent, the obituary circular of Sister Saint- 
Pierre, he read it with actual transports of joy and 
admiration. u Sit Nomen Domini benedidum ! ” lie- 
wrote to the Mother Prioress, “I think we are 
approaching the realization of the wishes of our 
venerable Sister, apostle of the Work of the Repa¬ 
ration. It is impossible that the Circular should 

* Saint-Jean-des-Corps, (St. John of the Blows) is an ancient 
cemetery, thus named from a bloody defeat, which the Normans 
sustained there in the ninth century, at sight of the Eelics of 
St. Martin. 


HER SEPULCHRE.—HER WORK. 445 

fail to make a great impression upon the Christian 
world, and excite it to implore pardon and mercy. 
May God be blessed and His Holy Name be ever 
glorified.” He also requests a certain number of 
copies to send to his friends. 

Thenceforth, he frequently repaired to the grave 
of our venerated Sister to pray, and he took great 
pains to have it kept in perfect order. From his 
daughter’s grave he would go to that of the Car¬ 
melite, and would recommend to lier all the works 
in which he was interested. Confidently believing 
that Sister Marie de Saint-Pierre must have great 
power in Heaven, he likewise frequently sent to St. 
John’s cemetery to pray, persons who came from afar 
to consult him in their neceàsities. 

One day, he said to a priest who was accompany¬ 
ing him thither, “ It is one of my secrets, for the 
obtaining of graces, to address my petitions to God 
through this holy soul.” And it was thus his zeal 
that gave the first impulse to those crowds of visi¬ 
tors to the tomb of this daughter of Carmel. 

In order to perpetuate these pilgrimages (for thus 
we may style them), and to give increased expression 
to his veneration for the memory of the holy Car¬ 
melite, he purchased a lot in the cemetery, made the 
necessary arrangements, and obtained, in his name 
and at his own expense, a. thirty years’ lease, the 
deed of which, bearing date of September 27, 1854, 
he presented to the Community. 

“But,” said he, “God can do still more to glorify 
His faithful servant, by furnishing the occasion of 
having her body removed from the cemetery to your 
Carmel. He alone knows how to bring it about.” 
38 


446 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


It was not very long ere this pious desire was re¬ 
alized. 

In 1856, three years subsequently, in consequence 
of the great inundation of the River Loire, the 
cemetery having been removed some distance beyond 
the city limits, M. Dupont took advantage of this 
opportunity of having Marie de Saint-Pierre’s re¬ 
mains exhumed and restored to her monastery. 

On the 13th of November, 1857, anniversary of 
the great day when she had entered the Order of 
Mount Carmel, M. Dupont, accompanied by the In¬ 
spector of Cemeteries, went early in the morning 
to St, John’s cemetery and proceeded to open her 
tomb. With the most scrupulous care and religious 
veneration, her bones and even the least shreds were 
collected, and laid in a walnut case enclosed in a 
double one of tin, which had been prepared for 
their reception. 

To the great joy of the Mother Prioress and all 
her nuns, he obtained permission from the municipal 
authorities for these precious remains to be interred 
within the monastery. They were then taken to their 
final place of sepulture in the Chapter Room where 
they now repose, the spot corresponding to that part 
of the chapel which is on the right of the entrance. 
A mural stone near the holy water fount bears this 
simple inscription : 

Here rests 

Sister Marie de Saint-Pierre of the Holy Family, 
A Professed Religious of this Monastery , 

Who Died July 8, 1848, 

Aged 31 years and 9 months, 

Having been a Religious 9 years and 8 months. 

Lord I, Thou wilt conceal her in the secret of Thy Face. 


HER SEPULCHRE.—HER WORK. 


447 


M. Dupont, who often attended Mass at the Car¬ 
melite convent, never entered the chapel without 
stopping at the spot directly above Sister Saint- 
Pierre’s tomb-, and, with characteristic faith, he would 
pause an instant to converse with his departed friend. 

These two great souls were yet to be united in 
their holy friendship, by a tie, more intimate and 
fruitful than any they had yet known, M. Dupont, 
in the designs of God, being appointed to develop 
and carry out the Work, the Lord had revealed to 
Sister Saint-Pierre, as a means of salvation for 
France,—the Work of the Reparation for Blas¬ 
phemy and of the Profanation of Sunday, by the 
cultus of His Holy Face. More fully informed 
than any other, as to the supernatural favors suc¬ 
cessively granted, on this subject, to the daughter of 
Carmel, the pious layman, both by his interior dis¬ 
positions, and indeed, his whole life, was already 
admirably prepared to devote, henceforth, all his 
faculties and energy to Works of Reparation. Be¬ 
ing most vividly impressed by the idea of the 
means, our Lord (in these revelations to the Sister), 
had indicated, of repairing the outrages against His 
Adorable Person : namely, the devotion to His Sor¬ 
rowful Face, so humiliated during His Sacred Pas¬ 
sion, and completely absorbed in this grand thought, 
he labored indefatigably in propagating the devo¬ 
tion, solely to extend God’s glory, and promote the 
good of souls, wishing to be, as he said, “ only the 
mouth-piece of Sister Saint-Pierre.” 

A circumstance very simple in itself, was about to 
give body and form to these pious desires, and 
unfold to his zeal, a work of practical and daily 


448 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


devotion. Towards the end of the Lenten season of 
1851, the Mother Prioress of Carmel of Tours, who 
knew how deep and fervent was M. Dupont’s piety, 
sent him a present of two engravings of our Lord’s 
Holy Face, as seen upon Veronica’s veil, preserved 
in the Vatican at Rome, she having received them 
from the Mother Prioress of the Benedictines of 
Arras, with whom for several years, she had been 
in correspondence relative to the Work of the Repa¬ 
ration. These holy pictures which came from Rome, 
were being distributed through the zeal of the nuns 
of Arras, who, at the time of their foundation in 
1816, having imbibed from the writings of St. Ger¬ 
trude, great devotion to the Holy Face, were deeply 
interested in the revelations, made on this subject, to 
the Carmelite of Tours. A favorable opportunity 
presenting itself, they had obtained from Rome a 
certain number of these holy pictures, all bearing 
the seal of authenticity; and at the request of the 
Mother Prioress of Carmel of Tours, they had sent 
thither several for différent persons, and two espe¬ 
cially for M. Dupont. One he gave away ; the 
other he kept, having it framed and placed in his 
sitting-room. And this was the venerated picture 
before which he passed the last twenty-five years of 
his life, constituting himself the apostle of the Repa¬ 
ration, and finding in it, in an admirable and touch¬ 
ing manner, the means so clearly indicated by Sister 
Saint-Pierre of making atonement to our Lord, and 
appeasing the Divine Justice. 

We have elsewhere given an account of the unin¬ 
terrupted series of marvels of every sort, which took 


HER SEPULCHRE.—HER WORK. 449 

place under his hands, and before his eyes, through 
the cultus of the Holy Face.* 

All these miraculous events he considered so 
many manifestations of the Divine Will regarding 
the revelations to our holy Carmelite, which accounts 
for the importance he attached to the certificates 
brought to him, preserving them most carefully as a 
precious deposit to be placed in the hands of the 
ecclesiastical authority, for such time as should be 
deemed opportune to make an investigation of Marie 
de Saint-Pierre’s mission. 

“ What a beneficial thrill,” he wrote, “will be sent 
through the world, when the Archbishop of Tours 
recognizes officially the truth of her revelations ! ” 
Later, he expresses himself as follows on this sub¬ 
ject: 

“Yes, if the revelations of Sister Saint-Pierre are 
recognized, it will, beyond all doubt, be a most terri¬ 
ble blow to the infernal spirit. It is thought that 
the prodigies operated by the oil of the lamp burn¬ 
ing before the image of the Holy Face, are calculated 
to attract the attention of the authority empowered 
to pronounce judgment upon the writings of the 
holy Carmelite. 

“These writings contain marvellously consoling 
things upon devotion to the Holy Face; in fact, they 


*See Volume 2nd, of La Vie de M. Dupont. This life of M. 
Dupont, is as yet untranslated. An abridged American edition 
of liis life lias appeared, under the title of thé “ Holy Man of 
Tours,” and giving many interesting details on this point, 
although, in the words of the translator, “much of the beauty 
of his life is lost from the fact of its being only an abridg¬ 
ment.” 


38 * 


450 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


plainly declare that the Holy Face must be the exte¬ 
rior and sensible sign of the Reparation. Now, 
every day, we witness in this spot extraordinary and 
remarkable cures, some of which could really be 
ranked among the miraculous were an investigation 
made. At least several occur daily before the Holy 
Face, after appplication of the oil, to say nothing of 
those which take place elsewhere, through the oil 
applied to the sick who cannot be brought here. 

u Such is the fact, call it what you will ! Be the 
cause what it may, its effects are to us a very clear 
manifestation of our Lord’s intention of procuring 
us the means of salvation, by the Work He Him¬ 
self demanded in His revelations to Marie de Saint- 
Pierre.” 

He not only recurs to this subject in his letters, 
but likewise in his conversations, and he was ever 
awaiting the breaking of the seals affixed to Sister 
Saint-Pierre’s writings. Hence, we may imagine 
how great was his joy, when, on his death-bed, he 
learned that the Archbishop of Tours, Mgr. Colet, 
piously inspired, had, at last, broken the seals, and 
that the examination of these precious writings, so 
long condemned to obscurity, had just been con¬ 
fided to the learned Benedictines of Solesmes, the 
worthy sons of his illustrious friend, Dom Gue- 
ranger. 

At this news his face became radiant with joy ; 
he raised his eyes towards Heaven and said : “ Nune 
dimittis , I must now go.” A. weight seemed to have 
been lifted from his heart, and a short while before 
expiring, on the 18th of March, 1876, he said, turn¬ 
ing his gaze towards the Carmelite monastery, where, 


HER SEPULCHRE.—HER WORK, 


451 


through his pious efforts, reposed the body of Sister 
Saint-Pierre, “ How brilliantly Carmel shines ! It 
is resplendent with rubies and emeralds 

After M. Dupont’s death, his precious image of 
the Holy Face was to become as the corner-stone of 
a new foundation for the continuance of his Work. 

He made no provision regarding it in his will. 
“ God,” said he, u will attend to it.” Nor was the 
confidence of this good Christian misplaced. God, 
in His own good time, raised to the See of St. 
Martin, a wise and holy Prelate, who in the face of 
sad events of which France had just been the the¬ 
atre, recognized at first sight, how providential in¬ 
deed was the mission of our holy Carmelite, as 
developed and practised by M. Dupont. An Epis¬ 
copal Ordinance, at once, transformed the private 
oratory of the “ Holy Man of Tours,” into a public 
chapel, the venerable prelate himself officiating on 
the occasion of its dedication, which took place on 
the 29th of J une, Feast of St. Peter, Prince of the 
Apostles, “ Patron of that fervent nun, who,” said 
the Archbishop, “had inspired the Work of the 
Reparation, and also, the touching manner in which 
it has been accomplished for so many years, in this 
ever blessed spot.” 

At the same time, His Grace established in this 
sanctuary, the Confraternity of the Reparation for 
Blasphemy and of the Profanation of Sunday, affili¬ 
ating it to that of Saint-Dizier already erected. 
But taking advantage of the clause which permits 
the Ordinary to modify the rules, provided its fun¬ 
damental principles remain intact, he gave this 
Confraternity a distinct character, and made of it, 


452 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


properly speaking, a Confraternity of the Holy 
Face, which, as we have seen, was really the embodi¬ 
ment of Sister Saint-Pierre’s inspirations. 

Likewise, to serve the new chapel by ministering 
spiritually to the numerous pilgrims who had begun 
to flock thither during M. Dupont’s life, and still 
continued to come, the worthy successor of St. 
Martin instituted, under the title of “ Priests of the 
Holy Face,” a Society of regular clergy living in 
Community, in the house, formerly occupied by M. 
Dupont, and who, following in his footsteps and 
under his auspices, would devote themselves to all 
the Reparative Works of our period. 

These several official acts, so calculated to honor 
Sister Saint-Pierre’s memory, were accomplished in 
less than a year from the time in which M. Dupont, 
according to the expression of His Grace, the Arch¬ 
bishop “ died in the odor of sanctity.” And it was 
thus the Work of the holy Carmelite, and that of 
the “ Holy Man of Tours,” already most intimately 
connected, now became consolidated in regular form 
and canonically recognized.* 

The diocese of St. Martin was thus beginning to 
recover the glory of which it had been accidentally 
deprived ; and re-entering into possession of its 
rights, those designating it as the centre where the 
sacred fire of the Reparation had first been enkin¬ 
dled. Since then, under the auspices and in the 
same house formerly occupied by M. Dupont, the 
Work of the Reparation has taken a new impulse; 


* See the Notice of “ M. Dupont and the Work of the Holy 
Face.” 


HER SEPULCHRE.—HER WORK. 453 

it lias spread afar, and day by day, its limits become 
more extended. The oratory of the Holy Face has, 
moreover, in these few years, grown to be a centre 
of prayer and of “ expiation,” towards which the 
gaze and hearts of numbers turn, not only from all 
parts of France, but in truth, from all Christendom. 

The pious invocations composed by Sister Saint- 
Pierre, and improperly called the “ Litany of the 
Holy Face,” have been authorized by many Pre¬ 
lates of our Holy Church. Pius IX. himself, with¬ 
out however giving it a liturgical approbation, 
blessed and enriched it with an Indulgence of 100 
days, applicable to the souls in Purgatory, each 
time it is recited with the subjoined prayers, and 
with the addition to each verse of the Litany, of 
one Gloria Patri , and of one Pater , Ave, and Gloria 
Patri at the end. 

This "Litany” has already been translated into 
English, Spanish, Italian and German, in order to 
satisfy the piety of the faithful speaking these lan¬ 
guages. 

Nor was it long before other Confraternities of 
the Holy Face, similar to the one founded at Tours 
by Mgr. Colet, were established in several cities, 
notably at Versailles, Rheims, Laval, Perpignan and 
Saint-Brieux. They are also being organized and 
in increasing numbers in Belgium, Holland, and 
even in America.* 

* A similar Confraternity of the Holy Face, affiliated to Saint- 
Dizier, and also to the one at Tours, France, has been canoni¬ 
cally erected in the public chapel of the Discalced Carmelite 
nuns of New Orleans, Louisiana, United States of America. A 
picture of the Holy Face is exposed over the altar, and in the 


454 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE, 


From all parts of the world we receive letters so¬ 
liciting pictures of the Holy Face, similar to that so 
long venerated by M. Dupont, which was an authen¬ 
tic fac simile of the Veil of Veronica. It would 
be impossible to calculate the number of these holy 
pictures exposed in various places, and nearly always 
with a lamp burning before them,—in private houses 
and oratories, in hospitals, and in the enclosure of 
Religious Communities, in public chapels, parochial 
churches and in Cathedrals. Even during M. Du¬ 
pont’s life, they were to be seen in the hospital at 
Vincennes, at the Visitation convent of Paray-le- 
Monial, and among the Benedictines of Arras, whilst 
to-day, they adorn Notre-Dame of Paris, the Ca¬ 
thedral of Perpignan, the Basilica of Lourdes, and 
the provisory chapel of the Sacred Heart at Mont¬ 
martre. 

The Priests of the Holy Face at Tours have 
charged themselves with the pious duty of obtaining 
these pictures (the fac-simile of Veronica’s veil) from 
Rome, and facilitating their distribution ; or, rather, 
we should say, supplying the demand for them, 
which is the consequence of a recognition of the 
necessities of our age, so natural is the idea of Rep¬ 
aration, so befitting and salutary, so powerful in 
attracting souls ! 

We must, indeed, admire the Providence of God 
in selecting as the focus whence radiates this mar¬ 
vellous Work, the city of St. Martin, the tomb of 
the Thaumaturgus of Gaul, who appears on every 

choir of the Religious, before which a lamp is kept constantly 
burning, the oil from which lamp has been known to effect won-: 
derful cures. 


HER SEPULCHRE.—HER WORK. 455 

page of our history as the most powerful Protector 
of Christian France. The mission of this great 
Bishop of Tours, whose name is so familiar, was to 
destroy the idols of paganism, to implant the Faith 
of Jesus Christ in our land, to build churches and 
found monasteries ! This was in the fifth century. 
And, behold ! in our day, under the shadow of his 
ever-glorious tomb, has another grand mission been 
assigned to two chosen souls, united by the same holy 
spirit impelling them towards a common end, not¬ 
withstanding the difference of age, origin and station 
in life! 

The poor little seamstress of Rennes and the rich 
planter of Martinique, both led by mysterious ways 
upon the Martinian soil, have offered the tribute of 
their piety, their zeal, their life indeed, to a Work, 
whose end is not to build, but to renovate and re¬ 
establish. 

We, of the nineteenth century, must rebuild what 
the first Apostles of our nation erected with so much 
pains and labor; we must restore to baptized souls 
what modern paganism has not indeed destroyed or 
effaced, but blighted and tarnished; we must atone 
for the outrages inflicted on the Sovereignty of God 
by the contemporaneous blasphemy of modern times, 
and the public profanation of Sunday, and we must 
also repair the moral losses, resulting from these two 
evils, to the divers classes of society. 

This need of Reparation is urgent : all Catholic 
hearts welcome its appearance, and the truly pious 
greet it with unbounded enthusiasm. Hence, if it 
be true,.that France, God’s privileged nation, the 
Eldest Daughter of the Church, be the most guilty 


456 


LIFE OF SISTER SAINT-PIERRE. 


of all others, because “much shall be demanded 
from her to whom much has been given ; ”—that 
blasphemy in her midst is more audacious, and pro¬ 
fanation of God’s Holy Days, more perverse than 
elsewhere, both working ruin far beyond human 
calculation, should not every generous Christian 
soul of the numbers our beloved country bears in 
her bosom, feel called upon to labor zealously in 
establishing and propagating this Work of the 
Reparation, so urgently demanded, in our Lord’s 
Name, by Sister Saint-Pierre? And since the 
cradle of this Work has been providentially placed 
in the very heart of the country, in that city of 
Tours, which has the happy privilege of possessing 
the tomb of the great Protector of the nation, and 
also the house, wherein has died, “in the odor of 
sanctity,” the pious adorer of the Holy Face, what 
more natural and just than to make this favored» 
spot the centre of our prayers and our hopes? 
What more patriotic, and at the same time more 
Catholic, than to unite our efforts in re-establishing 
and repairing what impiety and hatred of God have 
combined to corrupt and ruin ? 

The Work revealed to the admirable virgin whose 
history we have just related, is, at the same time, as 
she herself says, “a necessity of justice and a war¬ 
rant of mercy.” Let our efforts be in common ; let 
us unite ourselves in striving fervently to appease 
the Divine Justice; then indeed will it be our con¬ 
solation to experience only the effects of Mercy, all 
the more abundant and fruitful, in proportion as 
the Reparation has been prompt and fervent 






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